4 ms·

In non-intellectual property domains though, the creator of the good is actually deprived of something (the something itself) when it is taken without payment (

In non-intellectual property domains though, the creator of the good is actually deprived of something (the something itself) when it is taken without payment (one party loses, the other gains). With digital goods, copying is essentially free, so the creator doesn't lose anything, so one party gains while the other neither loses nor gains.

rick888 16y ago
"With digital goods, copying is essentially free, so the creator doesn't lose anything, so one party gains while the other neither loses nor gains." This isn't true. When you steal physical goods..the original owner loses just the cost of the physical item. It doesn't change the value. Digital goods are different. As more and more people pirate it, the perceived value approaches $0, which has the potential to destroy a business. Even worse than this, if it's not stopped, more and more people will just start assuming that software is free (and will not want to pay for it). Piracy hasn't just destroyed a business, it's destroying many industries. You may be fine with this. However, it will just result in more forms of DRM and an increase in services where you don't get to install it on your computer. I don't see the people bitching about DRM offering any kind of alternative. Most people, like you, won't even admit there is a problem with piracy. You also can't say that the owner doesn't lose anything. I have been involved with too many businesses that have seen piracy directly effect their business. With my own business, my sales dropped 40% when there were cracks readily available. When I disabled the cracks, sales went back up to normal.
- Gormo 16y ago
  While piracy may influence the perceived value of the good (although this is _very_ arguable) so does almost everything else. What competing products are on the market, and what are their price points? What are the trends in consumer preferences? What do the macroeconomic indicators look like this week/day/hour, and how are they influencing buying habits? "Will customers buy my product, and if so, at what price?" is an enormously non-trivial question, and the entire discipline of marketing revolves around trying to answer it. How much weight would you give to piracy against all of the other relevant variables in assessing the potential market value of a product?
  - rick888 16y ago
    ""Will customers buy my product, and if so, at what price?" is an enormously non-trivial question, and the entire discipline of marketing revolves around trying to answer it." Very true. However, if you have sites on the Internet that are more popular than yours giving the same thing out for free, eventually you won't have to even ask the question. It will be answered for you: $0. Most people take the path of least resistance. If they are given the choice of downloading something for free or buying it for $50, many will always find a reason to justify not paying for it. If the pirates were actually coming out with something innovative and competing (an example would be creating independent labels to compete with recording industry) the industry would truly have to worry. Instead, content is just copied for free and spread around. The only real defense to is to add more protection. Since the demand is just as strong, the industry doesn't really know if a loss of sales is because they are putting out shit or because of freeloaders. It actually may prevent good movies, music, and software from coming out and hurt consumers in the long-run. But, most people don't care. They just want free stuff and will go to great lengths to justify it.
    - Gormo 16y ago
      "People giving out the same thing as you for free" describes not just piracy, but anyone who is giving away a substitute good. It's the same argument Microsoft can make against OpenOffice or Linux. The same argument the Post Office might have against email. The fact that many software products do well on the market despite rampant piracy illustrates that there are plenty of customers who are willing to pay, and see the value in buying the product even when pirated copies are available. So if your product isn't performing as well enough to be viable, and you don't know whether to attribute it to (a) pirates copying it for free, or (b) the possibility that your product isn't very good, what response is more likely to generate positive value? You can (a) fight the pirates, incurring additional expense and/or diminishing the value proposition for your paying customers; or (b) improve the quality of your product in ways that actual customers will appreciate anyway. If the answer is (a), and the target market for your product is composed mostly of freeloading jerks, you're probably focusing on the wrong market.

rick888 16y ago

"With digital goods, copying is essentially free, so the creator doesn't lose anything, so one party gains while the other neither loses nor gains." This isn't true. When you steal physical goods..the original owner loses just the cost of the physical item. It doesn't change the value. Digital goods are different. As more and more people pirate it, the perceived value approaches $0, which has the potential to destroy a business. Even worse than this, if it's not stopped, more and more people will just start assuming that software is free (and will not want to pay for it). Piracy hasn't just destroyed a business, it's destroying many industries. You may be fine with this. However, it will just result in more forms of DRM and an increase in services where you don't get to install it on your computer. I don't see the people bitching about DRM offering any kind of alternative. Most people, like you, won't even admit there is a problem with piracy. You also can't say that the owner doesn't lose anything. I have been involved with too many businesses that have seen piracy directly effect their business. With my own business, my sales dropped 40% when there were cracks readily available. When I disabled the cracks, sales went back up to normal.

Gormo 16y ago
While piracy may influence the perceived value of the good (although this is _very_ arguable) so does almost everything else. What competing products are on the market, and what are their price points? What are the trends in consumer preferences? What do the macroeconomic indicators look like this week/day/hour, and how are they influencing buying habits? "Will customers buy my product, and if so, at what price?" is an enormously non-trivial question, and the entire discipline of marketing revolves around trying to answer it. How much weight would you give to piracy against all of the other relevant variables in assessing the potential market value of a product?
- rick888 16y ago
  ""Will customers buy my product, and if so, at what price?" is an enormously non-trivial question, and the entire discipline of marketing revolves around trying to answer it." Very true. However, if you have sites on the Internet that are more popular than yours giving the same thing out for free, eventually you won't have to even ask the question. It will be answered for you: $0. Most people take the path of least resistance. If they are given the choice of downloading something for free or buying it for $50, many will always find a reason to justify not paying for it. If the pirates were actually coming out with something innovative and competing (an example would be creating independent labels to compete with recording industry) the industry would truly have to worry. Instead, content is just copied for free and spread around. The only real defense to is to add more protection. Since the demand is just as strong, the industry doesn't really know if a loss of sales is because they are putting out shit or because of freeloaders. It actually may prevent good movies, music, and software from coming out and hurt consumers in the long-run. But, most people don't care. They just want free stuff and will go to great lengths to justify it.
  - Gormo 16y ago
    "People giving out the same thing as you for free" describes not just piracy, but anyone who is giving away a substitute good. It's the same argument Microsoft can make against OpenOffice or Linux. The same argument the Post Office might have against email. The fact that many software products do well on the market despite rampant piracy illustrates that there are plenty of customers who are willing to pay, and see the value in buying the product even when pirated copies are available. So if your product isn't performing as well enough to be viable, and you don't know whether to attribute it to (a) pirates copying it for free, or (b) the possibility that your product isn't very good, what response is more likely to generate positive value? You can (a) fight the pirates, incurring additional expense and/or diminishing the value proposition for your paying customers; or (b) improve the quality of your product in ways that actual customers will appreciate anyway. If the answer is (a), and the target market for your product is composed mostly of freeloading jerks, you're probably focusing on the wrong market.