Quote:
Originally Posted by Catlady
Well, perhaps I am especially dim, but I've attempted to figure out several times how to purchase geo-restricted material, and it seems quite daunting and confusing. Isn't it illegal anyway? Just as illegal as pirating? Why condone one but not the other?
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It is not illegal for a consumer to buy geo-restricted material.
It is illegal to sell it, in most cases, because somebody else owns the right to sell or distribute the product to that market by contract. Knowingly selling the "wrong" version to a consumer is violating the terms of a contract.
The consumer, on the other hand, may or not be violating the terms of service, which may or not even be actionable.
And again, the issue with piracy is the creator is not compensated for the consumption of their product. Out of region purchases are still purchases.
The best description of piracy I've ever seen is from Eric Flint at BAEN who equates it to shoplifting. It is petty theft and a cost of doing business. He doesn't fret over it but neither does he condone it.
False equivalencies only confuse the issue.