"South Park Studios" - How are Matt & Trey allowed to do that?

P

plex

New member
Hey everyone,

I realize I'm probably the last person in the world to discover this, but I only just stumbled on South Park Studios, and I was stunned to find out it is legal. Just out of curiosity: How come the creators can do that? Aren't they somehow in breach of the contract(s) with TV and DVD distributors by making the show available for free on the net? I'm not complaining, mind you. I find it fascinating. But I'd like to how they can do that. Anyone know?
 
It's not illegal to give away video if you own it. Comedy Central gives away full episodes of The Daily Show and Colbert, too. They're probably one of the more forward thinking networks as far as legal Internet video.

Except, you know, for the whole "making money off it" thing :p. They did figure out that giving away the videos boosts their ratings (or at least doesn't hurt them) and, in the case of South Park, probably sells DVDs, too.
 
I get that, I was just surprised it was actually happening. I mean, the people in the expensive suits aren't usually so generous, are they? Also, I thought the "South Park Studios" project was the brainchild of Matt and Trey only. So they did (have to) get permission from their distributors to do this?
 
The episodes are presented along with commercials. The people in the expensive suits allowed this to happen for the profits Comedy Central will make through advertising on the South Park Studios website.
 
Although it would be prohibitive (to say the least) to try to get anything like complete sets of the Daily Show or Colbert out on DVD, so it's not like having legal streaming versions of those shows run the risk of cannibalizing DVD sales the way South Park could. And considering that Viacom, the parent company of Comedy Central, has a reputation for being one of the most aggressive when it comes to things like making copyright complaints against YouTube (and not just against full episodes, either, but videos that use tiny clips or sound bytes), it definitely seems to be a typical case of corporate schizophrenia.

Not that I'm complaining, mind you, as I don't have cable, so South Park Studios is the only way I'm able to keep up with the latest episodes. I really hope it's working out for them, 'cause it's definitely a sweet deal from my end.
 
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