Quote:
Originally Posted by anamardoll
I can completely understand that. 
What would you feel about the below situation, just out of curiosity? (And it's okay if you don't want to answer - I'm just honestly talking out loud here.)
Author A has an older book that is still in print. Author A would like the older book to be available in eBook form, but the publisher refuses to allow the conversion. Author A would like the book to go out of print so that they could make the eBook available, but Publisher P still retains the rights for X number of years.
Customer C owns the paperback copy of the book and would like to buy the eBook in question, but is stymied because the eBook doesn't exist due to Publisher P's refusal to convert and sell the book. Consumer C decides to download the DarkNet copy of the book, and sends Author A an anonymous Paypal tip on Author A's website because Customer C can afford to support a favorite author.
Customer C gets the book they want. Author A gets money to support their work. Publisher P doesn't get any money, but this is largely because they've made a clear statement that they don't want money in exchange for eBooks.
Is this piracy?
(The legal answer is, perhaps, yes. IANAL, etc. But in your/everyone-else-in-this-thread's personal opinion?) |
I think by the letter of the law, Customer C illegally downloaded the content and whoever shared it online infringed copyright. I am also NAL. I have no personal ethical quibble with Customer C's behavior. Also, C's behavior is less likely to be a target of civil action than the uploader's.
I am also sympathetic to the customer because I have found myself in that position of owning a paper copy but wanting the book in electronic form. If it's not available at all, I don't feel that I'm depriving the publishing house of compensation for the work they did in making the electronic copy. When I have it in paper and a digital copy is actually available for purchase, it gets a little more hazy.
It irks me to pay again, but I am not 100% ethically ok with just downloading the darknets copy. On the one hand, it is legal for me to scan my copy of the book. I could argue that there is no big deal in taking a copy that someone else has scanned. It follows the spirit of the rule. I have the paper copy. The other person freely offered their work. How about if it's a DRM-stripped version of the publisher's copy, though? Does the distinction matter at all if there is the opportunity to buy a legal copy? When I bought the book, was I just buying paper or also the right to consume the content?