Bootleg videotapes of concerts flourish

With high-tech, camera-equipped cell phones now standard gear, venues are increasingly finding their anti-video policies stretched to the limit. Columbas Dispatch reports.

"We're dealing with thousands of people on a given night," said Blake Schilling, director of event services at Nationwide Arena. "We do the best to our ability to catch everyone. Obviously, when you're talking about thousands of people, it's pretty difficult."

So difficult, in fact, that within hours of Linkin Park's Columbus performance, videos of the show started popping up on YouTube. As of last night, viewers could choose from more than 50 clips.

... With most cell phones capable of shooting video and small digital cameras able to film lengthy live footage, policy enforcement can be a losing battle.

"You spend the night hunting flashes down," said Scott Dickson, director of event services at the Schottenstein Center. "Sometimes we have to weigh how tough we want to be."

But it's easier to prevent videotaping than get the videos off the Internet, said Edward Lee, a professor of copyright and intellectual property law at Ohio State University."

emily | 8:51 AM | How people and businesses are using videophones |
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