@kashif1: That is actually a pretty good example. An American citizen buying a legal copy could be as easy and as cheap as a Pakistani citizen buying a pirated version. The converted price of the legal product would be grossly high, that if that Pakistani citizen buys the pirated version using that converted price of a legal product, he/she could've bought 10 more copies of each different game :(
@Finalwish : Pssh, maybe even the police buys the pirated and download things XD And for how we think publishers get too much when they deserve bit less, that could be why more poeple buy games on Steam rather than the cooler boxed, physical copies. (not sure how much Valve gets from Steam though, hope it's less than the devs.)
I read an article a while back about how digital piracy is more common and accepted in poorer countries, because media companies don't adjust their prices in a way that makes any sense for those countries. A $.99 song on iTunes to a factory worker in the US might equal less than 10 minutes of work. A $.99 song on iTunes to a factory worker in the China might equal one day of work.
Yeah that's what I meant, by people in poorer countries are used to their own living standards and therefore oversea products from richer countries might be a problem for them, but yeah, in some countries, there are richer and poorer areas where.. for example, in the capital city many people are legal buyers while in some more rural areas more pirated things are bought and sold, also more products were downloaded illegally.
@Branthog: Wow, ok haha. Thanks. Talking about lost sale, somewhere mentioned in your replies, you reminded me about video-game renting, and second-hand sale. This guy from another forum thread talked about how these are as harmful as pirating. Video-game renting is pretty similar to illegal downloads when cracking groups bought a first piece of each game before removing the disc checking & activation steps and uploading them onto the web. Though these 2 activities (renting & second-hand products selling) are never known to be illegal, like most people don't even compare them to pirating, but it makes sense to compare because of the 'sales lost' that happens as well. So would you STiLL recommend these 2 choices for people who want to truly support devs and want to stop downloading stuff for free?
@jetsetwillie: You're not taking something, you're copying it. Taking means that a person who bought a product no longer has it, but that's not the case with piracy, is it?
Piracy is denial of income and sometimes theft of property, licenses and laws depending. Taking a copy doesn't always imply theft of property but it does deny income in every case regardless of the excuses involved.
How does it always deny income? I don't agree with that unless you can back it up somehow. Piracy is also never theft of property unless you are talking about the kind involving an eye patch and a wooden leg.
So hilarious about those eye patched guys, but that's totally equal to robbery at sea, isn't it? Not sure why they're called pirates.. XD
@imsh_pl: Yeah, unless someone actually bought the legal version but lost the disc key or is having problem passing that activation or disc check progress. Is that what you mean?
Bahahahaha, na, anyway, what about Canada? (Sorry) But I watched this Evil Helghasts character thing on Youtube and this guy said he downloaded a Maroon 5 album then the other shot him dead, then the shooter said oops he forgot that the one killed was Canadian. So does that mean downloading copyrighted things in Canada is considered legal or something?
I don't think piracy is ok, I think that if you can't afford the price of a game, then save your money or wait for a pricedrop or... any number of different things. I think the developers deserve to get paid for their hard work. I'm really only saying that piracy is not stealing. That doesn't make piracy ok, however.
Now, if piracy is the only way you can actually get a hold of a game... then we are nearing the point where I'd say "go for it".
Right :DD That's a really good choice, price drop since it's totally legal, by far the best solution for warez-downloaders to change.
@Tennmuerti: Yeah it's actually quite true, many people see them as one same thing, but anyway, still, they're both crimes.
I disagree, but to a point. I am copying something without paying for it. The difference is, if I steal a Ferrarri from a dealership Ferrarri has lost money: not necessarily the money of a sale, but they have lost the money they spent manufacturing the car because they need to remake the car to replace it: their car is gone. The same goes for any physical item.
If I had had copied the car they haven't actually lost anything, assuming I didn't copy instead of buying (that is important).
That is the difference between stealing and illegally copying something. The two are not one and the same, regardless of how well RIAA has convinced you otherwise. They are both, and should both be illegal, but they are not one and the same and can not be considered "equally bad".
Hey, yeah, I see how you can also use this idea: Stealing a psycial copy of a video game from a store psysically, by using hand and bringing it out of the store without paying and without getting caught, in contrast with downloading video games illegally. That rule broken for the second example is just infringing copyright. I personally think stealing psysically is slightly more severe XD
its the same with Ferrari's. i really want a Ferrari 458i, but those thing are way too expensive. but if i steal a Ferrari and promise to buy one in the future when im rich and got loads of money and stuff i'll buy one with the money i have.
Except, yet again... what if you were to COPY your neighbour's Ferrarri: just duplicate it? He still has his Ferrarri, you have your Ferrarri and Ferrarri itself (the company) didn't lose a sale because there's no f-in way you could have afforded buying one in the first place. That's kind of a difference scenario, isn't it? Now, if you actually had the money to buy the Ferrarri but just chose to copy it instead, then that is different yet again.
I'm not saying piracy is ok, it's not something I have done at all in the last 10 years or so, but it can damn well not be equated to stealing a physical item off a shelf like the anti piracy commercials would have you believe.
Hmm.. yeah, that makes a lot of sense.. Argh, ok, so I personally think it this way: The (copied) Ferrarri works as well as the real one, without a difference, just like how (single-player campaigns of most) pirated video games work as well as the original, legal ones, except, there will be a filthy stain thing being kept in copyright infringers' minds whenever they think about how developers deserve the money.. Explanation appreciated though, what do you think?
@BombKareshi: But I actually saw (forgot that site) this pie chart thing that shows where the money spent on a boxed games go to, and publishers got more than the developers, and I personally think it's kinda evil. @jetsetwillie: Right... I agree much with this example.. D: @JoeyRavn said:
I guess that if you can't afford something in the first place, you are not entitled to get it without paying. But things are always more complicated than that.
Shh!! Don't have to mention the place!! XD ahha. But like we both mentioned that the price is higher when converted from USD, and that is a high price taken from living standards from some other countries, and I thought if it was $60 of their own money currency, they could've afforded them, does that make sense? :\
@mosespippy: Hi, so do you mean, it's something wrong in other people's eyes from other countries who always buy legal products? Is that something to be shame of though?
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