"This is being done entirely as a gift to my fans," Moore said. "The only return any of us are hoping for is the largest turnout of young voters ever at the polls in November. I think Slacker Uprising will inspire million (sic) to get off the couch and give voting a chance."
Of course, once it was released to the wilds of the Web, it made its way very quickly to international torrenting websites like The Pirate Bay. Unlike DVDs and most corporate video distribution websites, there are no regional restrictions. This doesn't seem like a particularly big deal at first blush, but when you take into account, as TorrentFreak says today, that Michael Moore only owns the distribution rights for the United States and Canada, it becomes clear that there might be a flaw in this plan.
They had noted that this potential set of circumstances seemed obvious to them, but wondered if it was intentional or accidental by Moore. He responded today.
“What do you think I’m up to? I know it may not be obvious to most, but I think you guys get it,” Moore wrote to us. “I only own the US and Canadian rights. So my hands are tied. But this is the 21st century. What are ‘geographical rights’ ?” Moore continued. “I’ll say it for the hundredth time: If I buy a book and read it, and then give you the book to read, I have broken no laws. Why is that not true for all media?”
He went on to express that he's looking for folks to pick up on this fact (and perhaps a fight with the international copyright holders?). He might not get one, in this case. Slacker Uprising isn't the shockwave-inducing film that Fahrenheit 9/11 was, and isn't really as relevant to those residing outside the United States as to those inside. For these reasons, it's less likely that there will be a copyright fight here than under normal circumstances.