Broadway Blog - Broadway Bootlegs

On average, we delete more than a dozen bootleg requests every day from BroadwayWorld.com's many message boards of all shapes and sizes from audios to videos to sheet music, etc.

Personally, I've never enjoyed the experience of watching fuzzy, shaky videos, but can understand their appeal for those seeking to re-live or to see for the first time a glimmer of some of the stage's great performances (or at least those great performances since the invention of the camcorder).

Bootlegs are however illegal and while I'm not of the mind that seeing a video makes someone LESS likely to see the real deal if they can (often the opposite from an informal survey), the money that's made on them doesn't go to those whose blood, sweat and tears made the production what it was (or is).  

If you ask me, it's all the more reason why an economically viable model is needed for legitimate recordings of both videos and audios. 

The folks over at Digital Theatre are on the right track, now we just need to do the same on this side of the pond, for both professional and amateur productions. 

Where to begin?