Almost any movie or TV show can be found on the internet, but not always through legal means. A new study shows that the most popular and critically acclaimed films or TV titles can be obtained legally online.
KPMG, which conducted the study, identified 34 major online video distribution services, including transactional (buying or renting videos), subscription video on demand and advertising-supported video on demand. At least one of these services carried 94 percent of the 808 top films (determined by box office and critical acclaim) as of December 2013.
All of the 2012 box office hits could be found legally online, as well as 85 Oscar-winning best films and 60 top indie films between 2011 and 2013. The other majority of films legally accessible online included 98 percent of U.S. top 20 box office hits between 2000 and 2010, 96 percent of the American Film Institute's 100 critically acclaimed films and 77 percent of the 2013 top 100 box office hits.
As for TV show availability, 87 percent of the top 100 U.S. TV shows in 2013 were available (current season episodes). Top TV series were measured by ratings and awards (Golden Globes and Emmys). The availability increased for shows in 2012 (96 percent), 2011 (95 percent) and pre-2011 (96 percent).
For both film and TV, transaction platforms such as iTunes, Amazon and Google Play provided the most titles. Subscription video on demand provided the second most, which demonstrates that obtaining content legally would include some sort of payment.
Piracy is still an industry-wide problem because younger internet users are getting used to the idea of watching movies and TV shows for free, according to The Washington Post. HBO's "Game of Thrones" and Netflix's "Orange Is the New Black" are the two most pirated TV shows, and both require a subscription to view legally (HBO/HBOGo and Netflix).
Most video-streaming services run into problems when trying to secure a certain film title because owners of the rights of the film fail to make the rights available. In addition, sometimes there are discrepancies between various rights owners.
The study did not include film and TV shows available through TV Everywhere (playback systems by TV providers) or free online catch-up TV (provided through the networks' websites).
