The concept of downloading TV shows off the Internet is still a relatively new concept. The idea is to click a few buttons on your home computer and be able to watch the latest episode of your favorite show that you’ve missed. Similar to watching TV programs recorded on a DVR, viewers are turning to the Internet to catch up on their favorite TV shows. The question remains whether it is legal to download TV shows.

The Legal Debate over TV Show Downloads

It isn’t an easy to answer the question of whether it is legal to download TV shows. The answer to the question is mixed and is based on who you ask.

* From a copyright standpoint, it may become illegal if certain rules are broken. The legal owners of the TV show rights lose potential revenue when people use file-sharing systems to download shows. * From a personal standpoint, to download TV programs is legal Fifa Hack. As long as this TV shows you download are for private use and are not copied, shared or sold, it is legal at this time. * From a networked standpoint, to download TV Shows is only legal when done from the network’s website. Networks provide TV downloads as a promotional activity for viewers. As long as TV show downloads are available on network websites, they are perfectly legal.

It is expected that over time, the legal issues surrounding TV downloads will have to be examined to protect the copyrights and people involved in the making of TV shows.

Why Is There so Much Debate over the Legal Issues of TV Show Downloads?

Much of the TV downloads debate over the legality is in reaction to musicians who fought to make money from song downloads. It was proven that singers and groups, along with record labels, were losing as much as 25% of their sales to people who were downloading their songs over the Internet for free. Their copyrights were being protected and they were losing money because of it.

The writers, producers, actors and others involved in making the TV shows deserve to be paid. Just as it is illegal to copy a motion picture and distribute it without giving credit to the appropriate people, TV show downloads take a cut of the profits from the people involved.

Because TV is an essentially free anyway, much of the debate is over a loss in revenue from advertising. If fewer people watch TV shows on their television sets, it would change the way companies advertise. Viewers have reportedly stated that they would prefer to pay a small fee to watch TV downloads that are commercial free and ad free.

Legally Download TV Shows

There are some sites on the Internet, however, that provide a perfectly legal option to download TV episodes. You can pay a fee to watch the television show online, just as if you are renting a movie. This way you can watch missed TV episodes and catch up on your favorite shows without ignoring copyrights. The catch to legally download TV shows and series is that they are on the basis of a limited time frame and usage. TV shows can’t be copied, sent to another computer or save long-term. Television downloads are typically available for a week.