Yeah it happens. But why?

grimo1re · 08-14-2008, 07:41 AM

Positech Games, a one-man computer games company, has started a dialogue with game pirates. The company asked pirates to tell him why they pirate his games. You can read the response to that question here.

I'm wondering if it would be interesting & useful to look at the reasons for why people pirate books?

acidzebra · 08-14-2008, 07:47 AM

Interesting read.

"I got a few people, maybe 5% of the total, who basically said "I do it because I like free stuff and won't get caught. I'd do the same with anything if I knew I'd get away with it."

5% of total - the moral crusaders can breathe easy once more. I don't think this number has changed significantly in all of history.

zelda_pinwheel · 08-14-2008, 07:54 AM

that is a really interesting article. it's nice to see someone take that approach and enter into a reasonable discussion, keeping an open mind and truly listening to the answers (it seems rare !). i particularly found this part astonishing :
"I've gone from being demoralized by pirates to actually inspired by them"
and i'm very impressed by his willingness to adapt new models which take into account the desires of his customers.

i would be very interested to see a similar survey conducted about ebook piracy but apart from the completely game-specific points (of which there are few) i would not be surprised if the answers turned out to be the same. overall, despite his conclusion that while he would adapt in light of the responses he doubted this would have any impact on the larger game industry, i honestly found the article to be encouraging, because it shows above all that the vast majority of copyright infringers have reasons which they consider compelling but which can be addressed and resolved (by game companies, or by publishers...) and if these reasons are addressed they would happily pay for their games (/ebooks...).

thanks for the link ; really interesting reading.

rhadin · 08-14-2008, 10:57 AM

What I found interesting -- and relevant to books -- was this:

Quote:

DRM

This was expected, but whereas many pirates who debate the issue online are often abusive and aggressive on the topic, most of the DRM complaints were reasonable and well put. People don't like DRM, we knew that, but the extent to which DRM is turning away people who have no other complaints is possibly misunderstood. If you wanted to change ONE thing to get more pirates to buy games, scrapping DRM is it. These gamers are the low hanging fruit of this whole debate.

Alisa · 08-14-2008, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by acidzebra

Interesting read.

"I got a few people, maybe 5% of the total, who basically said "I do it because I like free stuff and won't get caught. I'd do the same with anything if I knew I'd get away with it."

5% of total - the moral crusaders can breathe easy once more. I don't think this number has changed significantly in all of history.

IMO, that's the 5% who are honest and don't try to pretty up with justifications. I do also believe a lot of the people who cite cost but I think a lot of the ideologues on the subject really just want free stuff but want to tell a nicer story about themselves.

jakewastaken · 08-14-2008, 05:41 PM

Nice link, thanks for sharing.

grimo1re · 08-15-2008, 06:06 AM

Yeah, I was quite impressed with this guys response too. It will be interesting to see where he's at say a year from now. To see if his planned measures will actually increase sales. And to see if he's still inspired....

I must admit for me convenience is a major issue. I'm breathlessly awaiting the release of Spore and I'm sooooo happy EA is offering the game as a download. I'm not happy with the price point (same as boxed version), but oh well I'll put up with it.

Background: I like free stuff and am lazy. Also, often the things I want can't be delivered legally. So I tend to freeload a tad.

08-14-2008, 07:41 AM	#1
grimo1re Geekette Posts: 435 Karma: 3335 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: NSW, Australia Device: Sony Reader PRS500, PocketBook 360	Yeah it happens. But why? Positech Games, a one-man computer games company, has started a dialogue with game pirates. The company asked pirates to tell him why they pirate his games. You can read the response to that question here. I'm wondering if it would be interesting & useful to look at the reasons for why people pirate books?

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08-14-2008, 07:47 AM	#2
acidzebra Liseuse Lover Posts: 869 Karma: 1035404 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Netherlands Device: PRS-505	Interesting read. "I got a few people, maybe 5% of the total, who basically said "I do it because I like free stuff and won't get caught. I'd do the same with anything if I knew I'd get away with it." 5% of total - the moral crusaders can breathe easy once more. I don't think this number has changed significantly in all of history.

08-14-2008, 07:54 AM	#3
zelda_pinwheel zeldinha zippy zeldissima Posts: 27,827 Karma: 921169 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Paris, France Device: eb1150 & is that a nook in her pocket, or she just happy to see you?	that is a really interesting article. it's nice to see someone take that approach and enter into a reasonable discussion, keeping an open mind and truly listening to the answers (it seems rare !). i particularly found this part astonishing : "I've gone from being demoralized by pirates to actually inspired by them" and i'm very impressed by his willingness to adapt new models which take into account the desires of his customers. i would be very interested to see a similar survey conducted about ebook piracy but apart from the completely game-specific points (of which there are few) i would not be surprised if the answers turned out to be the same. overall, despite his conclusion that while he would adapt in light of the responses he doubted this would have any impact on the larger game industry, i honestly found the article to be encouraging, because it shows above all that the vast majority of copyright infringers have reasons which they consider compelling but which can be addressed and resolved (by game companies, or by publishers...) and if these reasons are addressed they would happily pay for their games (/ebooks...). thanks for the link ; really interesting reading.

08-14-2008, 05:41 PM	#6
jakewastaken Media Whore. Posts: 118 Karma: 265 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: IL Device: PRS-505	Nice link, thanks for sharing.

08-15-2008, 06:06 AM	#7
grimo1re Geekette Posts: 435 Karma: 3335 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: NSW, Australia Device: Sony Reader PRS500, PocketBook 360	Yeah, I was quite impressed with this guys response too. It will be interesting to see where he's at say a year from now. To see if his planned measures will actually increase sales. And to see if he's still inspired.... I must admit for me convenience is a major issue. I'm breathlessly awaiting the release of Spore and I'm sooooo happy EA is offering the game as a download. I'm not happy with the price point (same as boxed version), but oh well I'll put up with it. Background: I like free stuff and am lazy. Also, often the things I want can't be delivered legally. So I tend to freeload a tad.

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