Quote:
Originally Posted by WritePR
Every person who got a pirated copy didn't buy it, which takes income away from him. That's stealing.
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Taking income away has nothing to do with stealing. My house has plenty of stuff I will never use, and will not replace. Less clutter, and it might be worth more. Taking that useless stuff I should have thrown out months ago is no better, in a legal or moral sense, than taking something I actually would have to use income to replace.
I, like you, suspect that pirating, on average, decreases sales. But you can't prove it. No burglar could ever be convicted if it had to be proven that the stolen item was something the victim needed or still wanted. It's enough to say that the thief took something of value. Look at the value of the item stolen, not whether my house contents were less valuable after it was taken.
P.S. Of course, burglary is much worse than piracy (or shoplifting) because of greater psychic harm to the victim who will fear home invasion comes next. Mine isn't an argument about how bad, but about whether it is bad.