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Originally Posted by HeffeD
Nope. The end result is not the same. There is a very big difference between making a copy yourself or downloading an illegally distributed product. Acquiring an illegal product is never legal regardless of your justification.
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No, the end result IS the same- the owner of the paper book now has an electronic version of that paper book, and that is covered under fair use.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeffeD
I was unaware that something could be produced for nothing, and that actual sales have no relation to being able to produce something.
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Actually, when you are discussing digital products, they CAN be produced for nothing, or almost next to nothing. Once the ebook is written, producing a thousand, or a million copies of it, cost just about the same amount- next to nothing. Same thing is true of software- the relevant costs are in R&D. Once a program is produced, it doesn't cost much more to make a million copies of it as opposed to a thousand. That's why you see some VERY profitable software companies.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeffeD
Sure, you might have purchased a copy of the book, but how many people downloading the illegal file didn't? That's lost revenue.
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No, this isn't lost revenue UNLESS the people who downloaded the book would have BOUGHT the book if the download wasn't available.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeffeD
I'm in the music business, and I can tell you first hand that illegal downloading does indeed impact the bottom line.
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And one problem with the music business is that they refuse to adjust to the realities of the new marketplace. The prices charged for cd's are still too high. If music cd's cost, say, $5 apiece, illegal downloading would probably be much diminished. I won't pay $20 for a DVD movie, for example, but I will pay $9. And I won't pay $15 for a music cd either, usually.
Many companies are just greedy, and when they can't sell a product for what they would like, they whine about "piracy." A license for M$ Vista would cost me $399 (Ultimate). Why would I spend $399 on an inferior product when I can use BSD- a much better OS- for free? Or Mac OS X- another superior product- costs about $150 for a 5-user home license?