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We would be operating under the assumption that our current licensing law is ideal. Meanwhile, China/other countries will benefit from new products that we are

We would be operating under the assumption that our current licensing law is ideal. Meanwhile, China/other countries will benefit from new products that we are too principled to use. Over time, what do you think will happen to the half of the world that arbitrarily chooses not to use a whole slew of new technologies? Copyright/patent law only "works" if everyone is compelled to adhere to it. Otherwise, you're just willingly putting yourself at a technological disadvantage.

rvnx 4y ago
In some twisted way, copyright infringement in this case benefits US consumers because they are able to afford devices cheaper because the manufacturer doesn't pay the proper (commercial closed) licensing fees.
- teawrecks 4y ago
  Yes. And as long as this relationship only works in this direction, China has no incentive to cooperate. If Chinese citizens were also able to buy US products for cheap because they used Chinese tech while ignoring licenses, then China would care. But they know this and are not interested in a partnership. So they took the other, more totalitarian route: make it illegal for their citizens to do that. They're not stupid though, they know that for a totalitarian govt to work they have to keep their citizens happy. So if their citizens are unhappy that they can't purchase a US product, they'll just spawn a Chinese company out of thin air to produce the same thing under a Chinese brand. If they can get away with it, they'll sell it outside China too. All of this is only possible because the west has already been manufacturing all its products over there for decades. The west made itself incredibly vulnerable by moving all manufacturing to China, and now China is taking advantage of that in every way it can. IMO the only way out of this mess is moving the vast majority of our manufacturing back out of China, but it would have to be heavily subsidized because people won't be able to afford it at first.

rvnx 4y ago

In some twisted way, copyright infringement in this case benefits US consumers because they are able to afford devices cheaper because the manufacturer doesn't pay the proper (commercial closed) licensing fees.

teawrecks 4y ago
Yes. And as long as this relationship only works in this direction, China has no incentive to cooperate. If Chinese citizens were also able to buy US products for cheap because they used Chinese tech while ignoring licenses, then China would care. But they know this and are not interested in a partnership. So they took the other, more totalitarian route: make it illegal for their citizens to do that. They're not stupid though, they know that for a totalitarian govt to work they have to keep their citizens happy. So if their citizens are unhappy that they can't purchase a US product, they'll just spawn a Chinese company out of thin air to produce the same thing under a Chinese brand. If they can get away with it, they'll sell it outside China too. All of this is only possible because the west has already been manufacturing all its products over there for decades. The west made itself incredibly vulnerable by moving all manufacturing to China, and now China is taking advantage of that in every way it can. IMO the only way out of this mess is moving the vast majority of our manufacturing back out of China, but it would have to be heavily subsidized because people won't be able to afford it at first.