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Originally Posted by Marcy
In this case, there is zero evidence of piracy of this particular author....
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Yes, and he's well aware of that fact.
He's basing the article more off the fact that if piracy isn't addressed, it might be possible to download every New York Times Bestseller for the last 10 years in an hour or less. For free.
However optimistic you may be about human behavior, it's slightly irrational to presume that the effects of that capability will be purely beneficial. Again, that does not seem to be the case for the music industry so far, which has faced lost sales year after year after year, despite offering DRM-free content for about 2 years now.
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Originally Posted by Marcy
Most people downloading these are pirate hoarders who barely read what they download.....
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I concur, there is certainly a strain of acquisition for its own sake in this kind of piracy.
I would also assert that a $1-to-$1 ratio is not an appropriate measure, especially with a huge compilation like that.
However, it is not inconceivable that piracy may do more harm than good, especially when such extensive bundles can be easily downloaded.