Legal Movie Downloads: 7 Reasons Why

The Internet offers many types of media downloads, including movies, music, books, and a variety of other types. Many movie lovers often wonder which movie sites offer legal downloads.

Many sites fail to mention whether or not it is legal to their download movies. Some insist that it is legal for them not to provide users with such information. One may wonder why a site offering legal movie downloads would have a problem informing users that their services are indeed legal.

Be cautious when using a site that uses file-sharing networks. Many of these sites appear very professional with their impressive graphics, but this may be to deceive users. These peer-to-peer networking sites can't guarantee that a movie you download will be legal. It is much safer to download movies from reliable movie studio sites, such as MGM or Fox, or larger US corporations such as REAL Networks' SuperPass.

Is it possible for legal movie downloads to be reasonably priced? If the practice of downloading legal movies had better video and audio quality, lower prices, and were supported by more people, they may become more commonplace. Downloading movies legally would make the experience much better.

The 7 Best Reasons for Downloading Movies Legally:

1. Bootlegs Equal Poor Quality
   Any movie that has been legally downloaded is always of better quality than those offered by bootleggers. Bootleg downloads will only be able to provide poor quality DVDs or video cassettes. Viewing movies illegally recorded by a bootlegger is a horrible experience. Squinting your eyes in an effort to make our the picture is not uncommon. Figures in the movie may be fuzzy and appear dark. Sometimes it is difficult to follow the movie script because of the poor quality.


2. High-Quality Movie Downloads
   Cutting-edge technology will always accompany a dependable movie downloading site. Viewing a movie downloaded from these sites will be almost the same as watching an actual DVD on your television. High-quality is ensured by the major movie studios supporting the site.


3. No Prosecution by Authorities
   Many people who download movies illegally do not believe they will be caught by authorities. Someone may successfully download illegal movies for a short time, but eventually they will be tracked to their Internet Service Provider. Severe penalties can be the result of illegally downloading movies. Downloading a movie illegally is not worth the consequences.


4. Legal Download Costs Increase Due to Piracy
   Anytime you download a movie illegally, you are raising the cost of legal movie downloads. People who legally download movies should not have to pay more because of illegal downloaders.


5. Enjoy the Privacy of Watching in Your Own Home
   Going to the neighborhood movie theater after a hard day at work is not very relaxing. The last thing you want to do is fight traffic and stand in line waiting for a ticket to a movie.


6. Eliminate Fuel Costs by Viewing at Home
   By downloading and watching a movie at home you are not spending money on gas. It would be much more relaxing if you spent the evening watching a romantic comedy or thriller with your spouse giving you a gentle massage.


7. Saving More than Gas Money
   The price of movie tickets has increased during the recent years. The price of the soda and popcorn theaters sell is outrageous. Why buy these things when you already have them at home.

Downloading a legal movie from the Internet is much simpler and safer than obtaining a low-quality bootleg copy. Avoid the hassle and outrageous costs of going to the theater. Enjoying a movie legally downloaded from a dependable and legitimate site is a much better alternative.

Thanks to the vast amount of different technologies available today, there are no 'limits' when it comes to downloading movies. What hasn't changed however are the risks of illegal downloading as it can get you in a lot of trouble. Unfortunately, there are thousands of websites that offer illegal movie downloads, music, and software. The first questions asked in the comment sections of these sites are usually "how is the quality?" or "is this a shaky cam recording" or for software "is this clean/legit" referring to whether or not the download contains a virus.

Sadly so, there are also hundreds of websites, lots of them all owned by the same company, that claim 'legit downloads', then charge you a $20 to $40 one-time fee only to give you access to some publicly free available software that lets you search through archives of ILLEGAL content and download this content with a torrent client. A torrent by the way is a type of file that instructs a client to download its content through a peer-to-peer network.

So the real question is, how do you know if the site you're using is legal or illegal?

First off, legal downloads are generally NOT free. There are certain exceptions such sites that allow you to download independent film maker's work or other 'unknown' movies. Generally though, if you the latest action movie that just hit the theater or just came out on DVD offer on a site and it won't cost you a penny to download it, it's 99.9% certain it's an illegal download.

If you're being asked to pay a one-time fee for 'full access', that's another sign that something's not right. That's like a movie theater telling you to pay $500 in exchange to watch unlimited movies for the rest of your life, now there isn't a movie theater in the world that's crazy enough to do that. Likewise, this doesn't work for an online movie download business either as they would have to pay the companies that own the rights to the movie you're downloading, and it's simply not possible to pay those kind of fees while offering your users unlimited lifetime access.

What is legit however are the sites that:

* Charge a monthly or a per-movie fee and;
* Are owned by a major (usually) US corporation.

You've probably heard of the following companies - which is another indicator that they're legal - these companies offer LEGAL MOVIE DOWNLOADS for a fee.

* Blockbuster - Not just a video store, they also have a 'download-to-rent' feature on their site where you can download a movie for a few dollars instead of having to drive to the video store. No worries about late fees either :)

* Cinemanow - This site is owned by several major film studios and offers monthly membership fees as well as per-movie download charges. The site however is rather expensive compared to alternatives but it is one of the few sites that is available to non-US residents.

* Real Network's Superpass - Real is a company that has been around since the early days of the web. They offer a monthly fee membership to download movies. The movies however are mostly older movies or otherwise not well known movies. For movie lovers this would definitely be worth a try (14-day free trial) but the average Joe will be disappointed to find there are no major blockbuster titles to be found on this site.

* Netflix - This is my personal favorite. Most of you have probably heard of Netflix - they're a company that mails you DVD's and you mail em back when you've finished watching them. You only pay a low monthly membership fee and you don't have to pay stamps or postage all the time either.
Recently, Netflix added a new feature to all their memberships and it allows you to download a large number of movies to your computer or laptop. It gets better however, you can also send the movie straight from Netflix' website onto your TiVo, Xbox 360, and various other supported DVR and Media devices.

The bottom line is that in the end it's best to stick to sites that offer LEGAL movie downloads. You'll get the best available quality, no risk fo adware, spyware, virus or other nastiness, you get the best technology (such as being able to send your movie to your Xbox 360, TiVo, etc., and best of all you're acting within the law instead of breaking it. How would you feel if you work all day, then at the end of the day someone takes your paperwork or computer to your boss and says it's his/her work and she gets paid for it instead of you. That's right, you got robbed. And robbing is exactly what YOU are doing when you're downloading movies illegally.

Typically when the average person wants to download a movie from the internet, the legal ramifications are the furthest thing from their mind. Piracy is illegal regardless of your intentions, be it simply downloading or distributing the movie. What appears to some as a victimless crime becomes a whole other matter when lawsuits are filed and/or time is spent behind bars for the simple action of downloading an illegal copy of said movie. Of course, the punishments vary depending on the degree in which the person is involved. Every year the film industry loses billions of dollars in revenue due to the illegal distribution of movies as torrents on several websites. Not only can you protect yourself, but you can also put a positive foot forward and support the entire industry itself by assuring that all of your films come from a reputable source. There are several websites that allow you to download movies legally, for a small price, and provide top DVD-quality movies for you to choose from.

Many of the websites offering these illegal torrents are careless in who they let upload and download their files. More often then not you find users, and/or bot programs, that upload malicious content in hopes of tricking users to download their files. What may appear to be the latest hit blockbuster one moment, may in fact be a keylogging trojan waiting in the wings to steal your account information (which could very well include your personal bank or credit card information). Victims of the theft often don't realize what's hit them until it's too late. The trojans themselves are embedded into files and require the user to click on the executable file in order to spread throughout your computer. Often times the result is merely a mild form of spyware that is used to track website hits and incorporate popup advertisements, though in extreme cases users have had their virtual identity stripped from their computers and lost countless dollars due to password theft. The best solution possible is the one in which the threat does not exist. Protect yourself and your computer by avoiding these unmonitored "free" websites or you may just get more then you bargained for.

So you want to download movies legally and with efficiency? There are so many websites providing this service these days that it can be difficult to know which one is the best means for you. The best way to determine which site you want to use is by closely examining the website's After Sales Report. A good site will provide 24-hour support, be it live chat or a phone call away, and be easily contactable via email. Several websites will list email as their only means of support, and often tend to place their customers into a queue in which they pick and choose what to answer at their own convenience. Customer service should always be at the forefront of their concerns. If you feel for any reason that your issues aren't in the companies interest, simply find another source.

The last thing to consider when downloading movies, is the format in which to view them. There are several factors involved when it comes to compatibility. If you're watching the films from your computer, be sure to take note of the player you are using. Different programs tend to use different file extentions, which may prove to be a hindrance. For example, if you are using Windows Media Player(WMP) the default format is a .WMA extension. The average movie file is in .AVI format and will require a codec in order to play on WMP. It is especially important to consider, when burning the film to a DVD as a good share of older file types won't be compatible with the DVD players of today. While it's convenient to expect the websites to keep up with ever-evolving technology, the reality can be far from the case. There are a good number of websites that will charge high prices for a format that was common five years ago, yet isn't compatible with todays DVD players. A good website will carry multiple formats, for the old and new - most even to accommodate portable players such as the iPod. Hand in hand with the format of your film comes the resolution. You'll want to consider the size of the television (or in some cases monitor) before initially downloading your movie. You don't want to be downloading something meant for a 17" display when you're watching it on a 50" widescreen TV, as the picture may appear cutoff or distorted.

It may seem complicated at first glance, though once you take the necessary steps to finding a well developed website, you'll be on your way to downloading movies the legal (and safe) way in no time!

Illegal torrent websites exhibit carelessness by not closely monitoring who uploads or downloads files. In fact, often, users and sometimes "bot" programs upload dangerous content in order to try to fool users into downloading the files.

What seems to be the latest blockbuster can in fact be something called a "keylogging trojan" that will attempt to hijack your personal information - possibly including bank and credit card data. The people who end up as victims usually don't know that they are in trouble - at least, until it is far too late. The trojans that have been downloaded exist deep within your files; you must execute one of these files, at which point it will infect your entire computer.

If you're in "luck", you will simply have downloaded "spyware" - software that websites use to track their hits and send ads to you; but sometimes, you will find that your virtual identity will be hijacked, leading to the loss of your password and the loss of countless dollars. The best thing to do is to eliminate the threat by protecting your computer and yourself and trying to avoid unmonitored, unregulated websites.