Game Of Thrones, Now an election issue

IN WHAT has got to be an election first, a voter has asked Opposition Leader Bill Shorten what he would do to make watching Game of Thrones cheaper.

Mr Shorten has indicated that he would help to make downloading and streaming TV and movies cheaper and more accessible for Australians if he is elected prime minister.

The issue came up yesterday when a voter at a town hall-style forum in Perth stood up and said that, while he was against illegal downloading, he was fed up with having to pay a premium just to watch Game of Thrones legally.

Mr Shorten said he accepted the argument “that downloading and not paying for (films and TV shows) is taking away from the intellectual property of artists”, but said there was also “an issue about price and affordability”.

Mr Shorten said disparity between the demand and supply of legal, affordable films and software had caused Australia’s piracy problem, but he indicated that, if elected, his party could have the capacity to put downward pressure on prices for such downloads.

“There is an issue about price and affordability, and it isn’t good enough for the Australian market to be treated as a lucrative market where you can charge higher prices for not just videos or films but indeed a range of software and technology,” he said.

“I don’t like the idea that there are a lot of companies that look at the Australian market and treat us with a soft touch and charge higher prices.”