The development of video platforms is in the ascendant. More and more movies are going to the cinema and then the Internet. Pay per movie has also become a new way for consumers to watch movies.

However, this consumption model has also caused many people to complain: there are more and more paid content on the expensive membership; after purchasing a single pay-per-view movie at full price, you cannot enjoy the highest-definition version...

　　Although the form of single-chip payment has strengthened the protection of intellectual property rights, it is also a fact that there is no standardized management of the payment form of each platform.

Make complaints

After becoming a paid member, you will have to pay for a single piece

　　"I bought a membership, but there are more paid content." As a member of Youku, Miss Zhong said that she can accept reasonable payment, but the platform has repeatedly added paid content on the basis of paid membership, "This change is due to the fact that you are already a member. added under the circumstances.”

　　Miss Zhong said that although the platform may mention in the disclaimer that membership rights can be changed, or that the final interpretation right belongs to the platform, in fact, most users "will not read the long-winded user terms."

　　In addition to thinking that it is unreasonable to superimpose the content of membership fees, Miss Zhong also thinks that the 7-day viewing time limit is a bit short, "You can only watch a single paid movie for 7 days. ."

　　The reporter checked social media and found that the audience's dissatisfaction with the single-movie payment is mainly due to two points: after purchasing a membership, you still need to pay for the single-movie viewing; single-movie payment has a viewing period, which is unacceptable.

　　The audience's dissatisfaction was not unfounded.

　　Taking Youku as an example, the “VIP member” (computer, mobile terminal) of the platform has a continuous annual price of 198 yuan/year, and a continuous monthly price of 15 yuan/month; The continuous annual subscription price is 479 yuan/year, and the continuous monthly subscription price is 29 yuan/month.

The expensive membership price makes consumers full of expectations for the user experience, but what they didn't expect is that in addition to membership, they have to pay for each piece, which naturally makes people "angry".

　　After experiencing the single-chip payment for many times, Ms. Zhong said that the platform's continuous increase of paid content has made her consider not renewing the membership, and will repurchase the membership unless there is content that she wants to watch.

　　In addition, the platform's pursuit of profit also disregards the rights and interests of consumers.

The series "Spider-Man" can be viewed on Tencent Video platform with VIP membership, but on Bilibili platform, it needs to be purchased at a price of 3 yuan per movie, or after opening a "big membership", it can be purchased at 1.5 yuan per movie. price to buy.

experience

If you want to see the highest-definition version, you need to pay for the superimposed single piece

　　In February, the reporter purchased the movie "Manslaughter 2" on the iQiyi platform in the form of a single payment. The single payment price of the movie is 12 yuan, and the platform member only needs 6 yuan to buy it.

However, when the reporter watched the movie after purchasing it, he found that the movie purchased at the full price of 12 yuan cannot enjoy the highest-definition version. If you want to "enjoy" the highest-definition, you have to purchase a platform membership.

This is not mentioned in the purchase instructions of the film.

　　When the reporter bought the movie, the purchase interface showed the price of the movie at 12 singular points (1 singular point is equal to 1 yuan), the preferential price after purchasing a member of 6 singular points, the viewing period and other information, but did not see any clear information about the movie. The reminder of the viewing requirements can only be seen when the definition is adjusted in the viewing interface after purchase. "Blu-ray 1080P" and "Frame Qiying Picture 4K" must be superimposed with membership to view.

　　On March 11, the reporter called iQIYI's human customer service for consultation.

After purchasing a single movie, if you want to "select a higher definition", you really need to "open an additional membership", "the specifics are subject to the front-end display".

　　The above situation is not limited to the iQiyi platform.

Ironically, when attracting members, major video platforms often use "high-definition 4K" and "Dolby sound effects" as promotional methods to attract more people to join members.

However, when consumers purchase online viewing qualifications, the platform has not made a clear prompt.

■Lawyer's point of view

The viewing time can be agreed, but the platform needs to specify

　　In response to the above problems, Wang Pengchao, a lawyer from Sichuan Mingju Law Firm, said that the rights and interests of video members and single-chip payment have also caused discussions among lawyers.

　　Is it illegal for the platform to require the purchaser to watch it within the specified time when purchasing a single pay-per-view movie?

Wang Pengchao said that when consumers buy single-piece pay-per-view movies, they actually form a new contractual relationship with the platform, and the platform can agree on relevant terms.

However, the clauses that expire when they expire are clauses that have a major interest in consumer rights, and the platform party should implement a special obligation to explain the clauses.

Failure to do so may render the provision invalid and thus have no legal effect on consumers.

　　In response to the phenomenon that "the highest-definition version needs to be superimposed on members but there is no obvious prompt", Wang Pengchao explained the case of "Beijing iQiyi Technology Co., Ltd. and Wu Shengwei's network service contract" as an example.

In this case, the court held a negative attitude towards iQIYI platform adding VIP paid items after Wu Shengwei purchased VIP.

　　Wang Pengchao believes that if consumers fully read the relevant terms when purchasing a single film, and do not find the clause that "you need to purchase a platform membership for viewing the highest-definition version", then the platform will add additional consumer obligations in the future. Article 8 of the Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests of the Republic: "Consumers have the right to know the real situation of the commodities they buy, use or the services they receive." Abide by social ethics, operate with integrity, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers; do not set unfair and unreasonable trading conditions, and do not force transactions." This clause may not be upheld by the court.

Consumer dissatisfaction mostly comes from the instability and unreasonable rule-making

　　From the perspective of intellectual property protection, the form of single-chip payment can indeed attract more works to the platform and provide consumers with more choices.

Ren Sijing, Deputy Director of the Intellectual Property Department of Sichuan Mingju Law Firm and Deputy Secretary-General of the Intellectual Property (Information Network and High-tech) Professional Committee of Sichuan Lawyers Association, said: "In a sense, single-chip payment is undoubtedly a market for knowledge protection. In particular, it reflects the value of video works.”

　　But Ren Sijing also mentioned that between intellectual property protection and consumer rights, there are indeed "real problems that are difficult to balance in the short term."

She said that a survey report shows that nearly two-thirds of Chinese netizens have never paid for online content, which means that most people still hold a conservative attitude towards content payment and other forms.

　　Ren Sijing believes that consumers are not unacceptable to pay for knowledge, "more because of the instability and irrationality of some operators' rules, especially some industry leaders."

　　"A platform or website that operates genuine video resources will bear a certain amount of copyright licensing fees in addition to regular costs. If you get exclusively licensed resources, as an operator, the licensing fee may be higher. In fact, this model will reversely stimulate authors to create more high-quality works, and consumers will have more opportunities to contact and experience better film and television works." Ren Sijing said.

　　Knowledge payment is an inevitable trend, and intellectual property protection is the top priority, but knowledge payment should not become a "cash cow" for the platform.

As lawyer Ren Sijing said, it is also important to have "recognized, open, transparent and standardized industry payment rules and standards", "especially in the provision of certain services, industry leaders should have corresponding social responsibilities and properly protect consumption benefits.”

　　West China Metropolis Daily - Cover reporter Liu Kexin