OUR VIEW: ‘Clean’ video stores shouldn’t make their own edits

There is a new craze in town. Actually, this craze has been around for a couple of years now, but it continues to cause quite a stir.

Edited video rental stores are popping up all over the community. Stores with the names of Flick’s Club and Clean Flicks. These new stores have found a new market in the valley and are hoping to “cache” in on these opportunities.

Some people see them as an asset, providing a much needed service to the residents of Logan and its surrounding communities. On the other hand, others view these new companies as intruding and offensive, which is slightly ironic because they claim to be cutting the offensive material out of the videos they edit.

In some very interesting ways, these stores have found a way of beating the copyright system. They call themselves clubs or other types of organizations so the members/renters can claim ownership and bypass all the legal hanky-panky.

At the same time, the filmmakers complain their artistic rights are not being met and these small-town companies are violating copyright laws.

There should be a way to find a happy medium on this issue. Movies are shown on airlines everyday, which are edited for content and viewable by all ages. The same movies are also cleaned up for television viewing a couple of years after the film is first released. If the video rental establishments see a need, or even a market for these services, there ought to be a compromise made between them and the film industry. The same editing performed by the large corporations for airlines and TV should be available for purchase or rental.

That way everyone wins.Copy Ed 10/8/02 Do we need this last sentence?