Confession: I work for a company that specializes in fighting music piracy, but I have definitely illegally downloaded my fair share of music from torrents and file-sharing sites over the last decade. I’ve never been busted by the police, nor have I ever had my internet service cancelled, but I will admit to my parents having received one or twelve letters from Comcast threatening to throttle our connection speed if said piracy should persist. Thankfully, things never came to that, but looking back now, they easily could have, and I would have almost certainly been at fault. Something changed, however, and it wasn’t my income or my parents’ willingness to support my addiction to new music. It was my understanding of entertainment not only as an art form, but also as a business, and it was at that moment I understood the true impact piracy has on the industry at large.


rob05c:

That's interesting, considering how many independent studies have found that piracy increases sales.

There are still a number of 'excuses' to pirate.

1. People who simply can't afford it. Some people are poor. They wouldn't be buying it anyway, they're not lost sales.

2. Region nonsense. We've all seen videos 'not available in your country.' I listen to both German and Japanese music – both of which are very difficult to find in my country. If someone pirates something which isn't possible to purchase, it's not a lost sale. Well, it is, but it was lost anyway. Due to stupidity.

3. DRM. DRM makes legally purchased content difficult or impossible to consume. My personal preference would be to purchase, then 'pirate' the DRM-free version, which would not be a lost sale. And which ought to be legal, if I have a license to consume. But it's not. Layers of stupidity.

4. It's not stealing. It's copyright infringement. It is neither legally nor morally stealing. You're not allowed to call it that until you stop claiming $22,500 per song in damages. Neither are you allowed to preach to me about morality, until you cease ruining entire families' lives over $1 songs.


posted 3381 days ago