There's a workprint of Star Wars Episode III on the Internet already. It's got some timecode and watermarks, but judging from the 19 second XVID sample that Waxy has posted, it seems like it's eminently watchable.
Workprints leak from studios. The studios are trying to lock down what customers do with DVDs and cable TV and PCs, but they can't even keep their own house in order. They've got laws that allow them to get your name from your ISP and to sue you into bankruptcy for file-sharing. They've got laws to criminalize the math to defeat DRM. They're after laws to let them design TVs and camcorders.
None of those laws, measures or policies will stop files like this from circulating on the Internet. Don't take my word for it, read what Microsoft's leading DRM engineers have to say about it.
But that's OK, because Star Wars III will make a metric crapload of money, no matter how many copies are downloaded from the Internet. Hell, the licensing deals alone have already recouped the cost of production, before the first ticket was sold.
The studios don't have a problem with downloading. There's plenty of downloading, but there's no problem. But even if there is a problem, none of the costly measures the studios have asked for will solve it.
Putting the shouting, petulant babies from the studios in charge of technology is plain nuts. They are too blinded by greed and hubris to be trusted.
