Quote:
Originally Posted by TGS
But a sale of what? As far as I understand it, (which, admittedly isn't far), in the UK books are zero rated for VAT, but ebooks are standard rated. The rationale for this is that ebooks are not "goods" but a service. Thus, it might be a sale but we are not buying what we think we are buying, (or rather, not buying in my case).
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No, the rationale is that
printed books are a
specific exception to VAT rating, and ebooks are not, since they are not "printed". The UK government has admitted they have the power to zero-rate ebooks, but chose not to.
riemann42 - You are
wrong. The law says I can resell, and your quoting the line of big media lobbying organisations is plainly and simply factually incorrect.
"Am I anti-consumer? No. Not at all."
No, you're "just" effectively massively pro-big media (and in the longer term, creating more support for the private copy exemption lobby) with taking that stance. DRM is no more and no less than an excuse.
If you want to change the law, sure, let's hear the specific proposals, but to claim with a straight face that existing law doesn't allow resale is propaganda. Remember that if the law is reviewed, you will only have a very small say, and big media will have a very large say - how do you propose to stop them getting their way?
The current system is not ideal, but it has the advantage of allowing consumers
some rights, which big media is repeatedly trying to strip.
Ah, specifics...you are, quite simply, proposing to strip first sale/exhaustion doctrine rights. And in return...what? Well, let's see... given media is sold in the EU, you're proposing people get their existing rights, stripping commercial organisations of reasonable display rights, limiting private lending of media...and oh, ONE new right, to outsource format conversion of media they own.
It's an absolutely terrible "deal" for consumers, it's more like a phase 1 wishlist for big media. You are simply and plainly incorrect on how you view current rights - it's a sale, you can sell it on, you can do anything with it not restricted by copyright (i.e. copies outside your direct control), etc. - in the UK, personal format shifting and DRM stripping and is not "legal", but it IS completely non-prosecutable, it's simply not in the public interest to prosecute (and so the CPS won't).
"The current used CD market is an example of this abuse."
Ohnoes, people exerting their legal rights is
abuse.
...
You're shilling for big media. My bad, nothing else in this post addressed to you is remotely relevant, I see. Sigh, I should know better than to respond to astroturfing...