Con Job Read Free Page A

they could cancel the show even though it was really popular.”
    “Or like Firefly got scuttled, though at least it got a DVD release.”
    Sergio nodded. “And MEGAN!ME isn’t making any money on Mr. Doobles , either, which means fans won’t get anything like it in the future and more creators won’t get picked up. So the TLDR is, some stuffy hateful exec kills a series, maybe just because of some personal reason, and everyone — fans, creators, everyone — gets screwed.”
    The room exploded into agreeing applause.
    Sergio pointed at the screen, probably referencing a slide which had been visible earlier. “I don’t like piracy. I have friends who are artists and writers, and I want them to get paid for their work. But rule number one of marketing is, Make it easy for people to give you their money, and right now it is legally impossible to give anyone money for Mr. Doobles . Honestly, getting the license dropped would be the best thing for Mr. Doobles , because then maybe some other company could pick it up and actually sell it to the people who want it.”
    More cheers and whistles. The guy who had protested earlier said something, but Jacob couldn’t hear it over the audience’s agreeing with Sergio.
    But Sergio had heard, and he shook his head. “That’s good in theory, but you know it’s not the only factor. You think there are no human personalities in the industry? No one ever gets a bee up his nose or a stick up his butt about a certain show or creator or whatever? And like he brought up about that radio show, if you can feed bad info to the board you can get whatever decision you want, maybe even get yourself a nice bonus for making them think you’re saving the company money. No, market demand is a big part of it, sure, but it’s not everything.”
    Someone stood and called, “So what do we do about it? You’re totally right — writing to MEGAN!ME doesn’t do anything, those letters don’t get passed on to the suits. And it’s not like the board of directors is actually reading all this on Twitter or Tumblr or anything. So what do we do?”
    Sergio grinned. “We find an exec, we slap him around until he’s willing to listen, we tell him to shut up and take our money, and if he isn’t cooperative we push him into a busy highway.” He laughed and shook his head. “Seriously, man, I don’t know. That’s the thing, we’re just screwed. They’re the gatekeepers, and as long as we have this stupid licensing system that makes it illegal to buy direct, we just have to wait for them to die off. Pop Culture did already; maybe MEGAN!ME will be next. We can only hope.”
    Someone beside the door signaled, and Sergio nodded. “Right, sorry, that’s time. Gotta tear down and get out for the next panel. Thanks for the talk, everyone!”
    “There’s a petition online about Mr. Doobles ….” someone shouted over the shuffle of the audience rising and starting toward the door. Jacob and Samantha went along with the river of exiting attendees and then slid into an eddy beside the door.
    A few minutes later, Sergio came out, carrying a tablet and adapter. “Hey, guys! Good to see you!”
    “You too. Got a bit exciting in there?”
    “The Con Job crowd’s always a little more interested in the business side of things. That’s why I can even do an import and distribution talk here; wouldn’t fly at a lot of cons. You guys got dinner plans?”
    “Probably getting pizzas in the room. I’ll text you when we’re thinking about ordering.”
    “Sounds good.”
    Samantha snapped her fingers and pointed at a woman passing in the hall. “You! I’m sorry, I’ve been trying to think since I first saw you. Who are you playing?”
    The young woman in the blue suit fingered her Hello, my name is Laura badge. “To be fair, most people don’t remember the blue suit, and it’s from a book, so there wasn’t a really clear visual….”
    Jacob noticed her slicked hair was now a bit fuzzy, her corsage