Quote:
Originally Posted by no.guru
I have a couple of comments about file sharing in general.
A fear of technology seems to be relevant here. Sharing printed books with friends and family isn't regarded as piracy. Borrowing a printed book from someone - stealing the content - is perfectly fine.
We're told that pulling the same book from a torrent and reading it in your reader is different. The objection will be raised that torrents involve much higher numbers, but it's not relevant. You can let 500 or 5000+ friends read your printed book and no one will threaten to sue, not even the publishers.
If piracy is wrong then so are traditional libraries.
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The difference is that a digital file can be copied infinitely, and each copy is perfect. With a library, only one or two copies are available at any one time. You can only lend a physical book to one person at a time. With a pirated file, 1000s of people can get a copy they can keep, and that copy is exactly the same as the original. It's still obvious (to us at least) that this type of piracy can still lead to future sales. I can understand why the publishers are scared, but they are shooting themselves in the foot trying to stop piracy.
It's been demonstrated that it is impossible to stop piracy. They should be using these technologies to their advantage. But they are too focused on their profit margins and the 'old way'. Fools.