The problem here is how piracy kills the growth of alternatives. You still help grow the ecosystem of whatever you're pirating, and might buy supporting tools,

The problem here is how piracy kills the growth of alternatives. You still help grow the ecosystem of whatever you're pirating, and might buy supporting tools, merchandise, courses, ... Microsoft famously said they rather have people pirating their software than someone else's. Another example is how pirating Photoshop doesn't hurt Photoshop, but does hurt e.g. Paint Shop Pro.