Quote:
Originally Posted by Lanik42
Something only has monetary value when someone (a buyer) places value upon it, by purchasing. A seller can say something has a particular value, but unless buyers agree (and thus give it value), it is really worth nothing to the seller.
In addition, when dealing with things that do not detract in value when copied, such as mp3s and ebooks, we enter a new realm, which is of course widely debated both here and across the world.
I'm not trying to promote "piracy" - just trying to clarify the matter at hand. Though I have no problem telling you I will download "shared" books if not available otherwise - for instance, Roger Zelazny is one of my favorite authors. I have purchased a large number of his pBooks, but ebooks have been really hard to find... unless I obtain them from other means. And don't worry about the author not getting his cut... he''s gone  |
I agree with this to the extent that the material in question is not commercially available. However, when and if it is, and rather than purchase a legitimate copy, an individual seeks out and downloads a file from a filesharing site, well, again, it is, in essence, stealing.
The music industry was pretty much brought to its knees as a result of filesharing, to suggest that it is just some minor offense that does not equal stealing, seems, to me, disingenuous.
As you don’t own the copy-written material, “sharing” is also a bogus term – a euphemism employed to soften what amounts, essentially, to stealing.