We're running wildly off topic by now, so, let's add something to the mix.

It has been lamented the last couple of pages in this thread that are are fewer contributions. Most of us seem to assume it is because less people want to upload profiles. That may be so in a few cases --where a person denounced loudly some trolls badgering his contributions, right or wrong is not relevant--, but there are at least two other reasons.

Sometimes someone has less interest in DVDp and walks away. We feel this especially if that person was a frequent contributor. For instance, the last (I think 2) years substantially less profiles are being submitted in the UK locality. But also, there are far less new DVD or BR releases. The recession being one cause (a distributor will not release a loss making disk...). Another that already an awful lot of movies have been released on DVD and a substantial part on BR. I am not saying the  back catalogue is empty, far from it, but it is a bit like the law of diminishing returns. Lastly, because of the previous argument, distributors only have to keep up with new movies. With less new releases, there is less to contribute.

As pointed out in recent posts, this is not a movie db, but a released DVD or BR db. So any movie not released on disk but available though the shady parts of the internet (remember, uploading is illegal just about everywhere on this planet) will not be found in the DVDp db. End of story.

Then one more rant (of sorts). I'd like to be proud of my country (and flag) and I do not condone Invisibleman's download behaviour now that he declared himself a fellow countryman. Yes, there is an awkward tax here on hard disks, floppies (if these are still available  ), (re)writable disks and so on. But if you compute the taxed amount per movie (disk space / average movie size, even in HD, or disk space / average song size), it boils down to a cent per movie or thereabouts, or a fraction of that with songs. I do not like high retail prices, sure, but this is a rediculously low compensation. It is even far less than the much maligned a cent per song via the legal music streaming sites. AFAIK "cheap skate" isn't yet in the profanity filter, and it does apply to "Invisibleman".

Also, the 'legal' downloading argument from the copyright tax, may be a true argument in the Netherlands, it is also an argument of convenience. Many people I speak to say they will continue downloads if the taxation argument was removed. As uploading is illegal on the planet (movie, song or game), downloading is a form of illegal trading. Taxation excuse or not. Period.

Back to "on topic". Anyone with a NEW perspective on the IMDB vs DVDp db debate ?

Quoting Lewis_Prothero:

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Quoting Invisibleman:

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at least I will, download if I want to see a movie quickly and ones downloaded, I keep.

So I guess the Netherlands have to be considered lucky that you didn't want anything else yet that you didn't want to wait for ...

Theft is Theft, no matter what you steal and for what reasons.
From all possible reasons for theft yours isn't even one I would accept as excuse.

Agreed.

Invisbleman is in the wrong place if he thinks he can publicly say that he is stealing without being reported to the appropriate authorities. 

Quoting eommen:

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Oddly enough, this law does not protect against downloading games or software without proper payment. That IS illegal here.

So reporting to the authorities is a dead end here.

As I said, as uploading is illegal, IMHO it still is trading illegal goods.

Most P2P software require that you must enable uploading at least while downloading.

Quoting eommen:

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Quoting Pantheon:

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<...>
Invisbleman is in the wrong place if he thinks he can publicly say that he is stealing without being reported to the appropriate authorities. 

That is the point he made: as Dutch law (and case law) stands, he isn't stealing, because the media on which he stores the download have been taxed with a copyright tax. This tax originated from the days that schools were copying en masse from books giving students a cheap copy of the relevant part. It thus created compensation for the authors.
Oddly enough, this law does not protect against downloading games or software without proper payment. That IS illegal here.

So reporting to the authorities is a dead end here.

As I said, as uploading is illegal, IMHO it still is trading illegal goods.

Hello Eommen,

The statement you make is partly true. But my point is, that I pay this TAX regardless if I store this media on or not. Even so, it is, that when you buy a Setup-box, without any possibility to store anything on, you pay this tax. And as it is with smartphones, those are divided for <16GB and >16GB. 16GB you pay surely more. But if you buy a smartphone/cell Phone with 4Gb storage and there is a possibility (not even if you have) that you can add an SD in that can handle a total (4GB internal +GB SD) >16 then you pay the >16GB taks and not the <16GB tax.

And also may I add, that the industry together with the goverment, agree on this and preffer this over a download prohibition, when it is known to them, that the source mostly is uploaded and therefore considerd illegal. And also may I add, even do the TAX is indeed from that time, as you said, but is renewed in 2013, with agreement of the industry (surely only those that are seated in the Netherlands).

The statement that the source isn't legal, I don't dispute. But with this in mind, the industry make also that agreement. And if I need to pay to that industry, for storage that I don't even have (like I said setup-box, smartphone but not the SD) then I don't feel that bad for it. And it is not a view cents as you say, this is only true on blanco CD's/Dvd's, but like a HD it is something like 1.5% excl. regulare TAX. And I do share you opninion, that 1.5% isn't that big of a deal and you can dispute if it is too high or too less. I think, that they can ask more. But don't agree and take my money and then say you can't use it.

Quoting eommen:

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Not to put too fine a word on it, but the "industry that agreed" were the sellers of settopboxes, HD-TV-recorders, hard disk vendors and the like. They had to live with a retail price slightly higher than they would have liked.

The movie industry, in NL well represented by the "Brein" (='brain') foundation, doesn't really agree and still likes an outright ban on downloading. And do away with that taxation.

That said, if they get their way, it'll be difficult (in a legal sense) to resolve the right to download anything if you have a storage medium this copyright tax has been levied on. You've got a (small) point there.

For the legal specialists: storage of a download may be legal, but the act of downloading --not storing-- is an act of trading in illegal stuff (in Dutch: "heling"). But AFAIK, this fine line between obtaining the data and the act of storing it hasn't been tested in court yet by a public prosecutor.

For me it's easy. As I live near the border, I go to Germany (or Belgium) and buy a way cheaper hard disk there, no copyright tax there... 

For for all you reading along, to get a perspective of Dutch politics and law...

I'm sorry to disagree, but the entitled partys and the goverment both agree and preffered this above the download prohibition. The industry that provided the hardware didn't agree and don't want that. And why should they, their products are only getting more expensive and they don't have any benifit.

http://www.solv.nl/weblog/thuiskopieheffing-historisch-beschouwd/19265 Here is a link, if it works (For the none Dutch, I'm sorry, it's in Dutch).

And BREIN is searching for the uploaders and not the downloaders. And I may add, they do it poorly and only intimidate the smaller, mostly persons that don't have the finance to go to court and therefore close the internet doors. Surely there are also some in that are illigal stuff, but not all. And even like FTD they changed everything according BREIN's wishes, but stil BREIN did want to court and FTD finaly just couldn't pay the lawsuits anymore

Quoting eommen:

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This thread is derailing into a Dutch political issue. I do not want that or like that.
So please back to "on topic". Anyone with a NEW perspective on the IMDB vs DVDp db debate  ?

I agree totaly with this suggestion

I truly believe it's an insane idea they have. That people have to pay money, for something that they are not allow to use, even if the money you pay is for that.

Here also you pay, to compensate them for the "illegal" downloads, but they don't want us to do. That I think is insane also.

But in the Netherlands it is something like drugs. You are allowed to use drugs, you are allowed to own for personal use, you are allowed to buy, but you are not allowed to sell. And then they came up with the coffeeshops, where you can buy anything, except coffee. They are also allowed (it's still illegal, but condoned) to sell. But they are not allowed to grow the drugs themselves and they are not allowed to buy illegal. But where do you think they are getting that stuff? There is not a free market in here where you can buy legally.

I think the OP has been discussed and there is nothing left to add.