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Originally Posted by corroonb
A lot of these problems have arisen because the content distributors simply do not want to reconsider their business model in the light of such massive technological and cultural change. NetFlix and such one charge, unlimited content services are the future of electronic content but the big companies are extremely resistant to applying this simple idea more widely.
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In the book arena, which is the one I'm interested in, we already have the NetFlix model on steroids with public libraries. Creating a situation in which, on top of this, readers could get almost any book in the non-DRM form-factor of their choice, and at NetFlix like prices, would result in even lower advances for authors -- who already, with extremely few exceptions, have low incomes.
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Threats and draconian actions will not help.
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I actually agree. Mild sanctions are more likely to help.
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Originally Posted by corroonb
Copying has always been generally acceptable from recording TV shows on VCR (and now DVR boxes) to recording songs from the radio to creating bootleg LPs and so on. Theft on the other hand is acceptable behaviour to very few people.
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It all depends on how you define theft. If you google these terms, and page through the results, you will find a whole bunch of countries mentioned:
"cheating on taxes" "national pastime"
I'd say that there are, in most countries, only a minority of teenagers who never once engage in theft, however you define it. My claim is that most people occasionally engage in some form of theft, and we should discourage this without ruining their lives.
In most languages, there are few eBooks. In most countries, there are few eReaders. So I'm guessing most books are still stolen the old fashioned way.
As for music, in living memory, almost all the theft was probably in form of sneaking into live performances. This is mildly wrong but still wrong.
Lastly, the copying gadgets. Most people in the world, even if they have televisions, don't have copying gadgets. As for creating bootleg LP's, I'm 57 years old and never heard of this, but it sounds like the kind of theft a rich toff would engage in, while the poor fellow was slipping a 45* into his jacket.
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* P.S.: 45 RPM record intended! We're in a gun-free school zone here, I hope.