Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
Ideas indeed cannot be protected, but a book is not an "idea" any more than a chair or a house are ideas. All are concrete expressions of ideas, and that process of physical instantiation grants them legal protection.
|
Of course, one might point out that you can't steal what doesn't exist. If the copyright holder doesn't produce an ebook of the work, then you can't steal it. There is a reason that copyright violation is civil rather than criminal.
That's why I keep asking "what's the harm". From a moral point of view, the question is, have you harmed someone? People claim all sorts of outrageous things. The CEO of Disney once famously claimed that you were stealing from Disney is you didn't watch the commercials. Just because someone claims something, doesn't make it so.
I would argue that if you download an ebook from someone other than the copyright holder that is currently for sale, then you have harmed the copyright holder. I would also argue that if an ebook is not currently for sale, then you have harmed no one. I would argue that, much like the case with the Harry Potter ebooks, once it does become available, you would want to replace your "pirated" version with a "legit" version so the copyright holder is compensated. If someone did this, I would consider it moral behavior.
I would also point out that violation of copyright isn't stealing. Copyright isn't property. If it's not property, it can't be stolen. Downloading an ebook isn't the same as breaking into a store. It may not be moral in my eyes, but it isn't stealing.