Dept. of Convenient Human Error

Google "44" and "piracy" and MPAA and you'll find this factoid:

In a 2005 study it commissioned, the Motion Picture Association of America claimed that 44 percent of the industry's domestic losses came from illegal downloading of movies by college students, who often have access to high-bandwidth networks on campus.

It's cited in academic papers and university policies and… it's not true.

The MPAA has used the study to pressure colleges to take tougher steps to prevent illegal file-sharing and to back legislation currently before the House of Representatives that would force them to do so.

But now the MPAA, which represents the U.S. motion picture industry, has told education groups a "human error" in that survey caused it to get the number wrong. It now blames college students for about 15 percent of revenue loss.

Surely, they'll now ask the colleges that changed their policies to take the heat off.

Via Boing Boing.