Movie Downloads: How to Download Free Movies

Movie Downloads: How to Download Free Movies - By: Pete Nisbet


People are still seeking movie downloads and information on how to download free movies online in spite of all the publicity regarding the legality or otherwise of doing this. There are two reasons for this, so let’s discuss each of them.

Some Movie Downloads Are Legal

First, movie downloads are not illegal. Add to that the fact that file sharing software is not illegal either, and we have a problem, because when the two come together it can be illegal, but not always. If you download free movies that are protected by copyright you are breaking the law – pure and simple, and you have no excuse if caught. It’s the getting caught that doesn’t happen, but more on that later.

There are online movie download sites that offer movies to download from a subscription site perfectly legally. Although there appear to be no movie equivalents of the new legal version of the Napster music downloading site, you can pay a one-off membership to download unlimited movies legally from sites that have a database containing pre-approved videos.

These videos are either of movies now in the public domain or of movies for which a download license has been purchased by the membership site. Both of these types of movie downloads are legal, and you can download free movies from such websites without worrying about copyright issues. Such sites offer a good deal which is far cheaper than online rental businesses offer, and you are not renting the video but downloading it and thus virtually owning it. However, not all movie download sites are legal.

Some Movie Downloads Are Not Legal

Some movie downloads are illegal because they are distributed via file sharing services. You can download free movies from these bootleg movie services by a paying a membership fee that gives to access to software that enables you to connect your hard disk to those of all other members online that have the movie you want.

The file is downloaded from each of these computers, and the more on the network the quicker the download. While this type of file sharing software is 100% legal, the way it is used by most people is anything but. The correct way to download free movies online is to use it for work produced by amateurs offering it free to the network.

Perhaps they want to see how their work is accepted or maybe they just want to give it away as some give away videos on YouTube. Nevertheless, people still use such software for movie downloads that are copyright protected, and there is a move afoot to ban file sharing software because of this. What do you think? Should credit cards be banned because some people use them illegally? Should Facebook be banned because pervs use it illegally? Perhaps, and perhaps not appears to be the consensus! Whatever that means.

Conclusions

The conclusions to be drawn here are threefold:

1. While movie downloads from legitimate sites are legal, people should be able to use them to download free movies if they want to. However, how many are actually free? You will generally pay a lifetime membership fee and then be enabled to download all the free movies you want from websites with approved downloadable stock.

2. File sharing websites should be illegal if they prompt people to download free movies that are protected by copyright. Again the same membership fee renders them not really free. But near enough because the fee is often a lifetime one. Some offer yearly or two-yearly memberships at reduced prices, though such bootleg movies are illegal to download.

3. Whether legal or not, it is very easy to download movies illegally, and very little is being done to stop it. It appears that the movie industry is either not bothered too much or has accepted the fact that it happens. Most movie downloads are legal these days and the websites offering them have become more sophisticated.

It can no longer be assumed that sites offering you the software to download free movies are operating illegally since most are now using legal formats with pre-approved videos or those in the public domain. However, many still are and it is your choice whether to use them or not: you are legally responsible for your own actions.