OK, this is an interesting topic, and I think we may get a lively debate going here…
Piracy, where do you stand on it?Please note that this applies equally to games, movies, music, etc. so if you say "Pirating games is wrong!" because you're a game developer, but then download music, you're a big fat hypocrite.My stance is that it is freedom of information. I believe that you have a right to access information without having to pay some sort of fee, and this includes forms of entertainment.But how then, do the producers of information make money?Simple. Movies make money by showing in theaters. Music artists make money by performing live. Both will also profit by selling merchandise. These are extremely profitable ventures, and indeed, music artists for instance rarely make a dime off of record sales anyway, all of that money goes to the RIAA, unless you're huge like Metallica or something.Furthermore, some individuals who are not past pirating will buy legitimate copies anyway, because they simply want to have an 'official' copy. I download games, but I buy legitimate copies of Pokemon games because that's my thing. I just want a legit copy for no other reason than wanting a legit copy.Piracy is not some huge threat to the industries. There will ALWAYS be people available to purchase official copies or merchandise, or go to live viewings and performances. And in the case of small game developers or independent music artists, people are much more likely to shell out the cash as a sign of support for such groups.Piracy stops with accessing information, however. The freedom to access information does not and should not allow you to profit off of other people's ideas by selling their information as your own. The producers of information still 'own' that information and they own the right to make money off of it.
I purchase all my music and games. I only rent movies. Idk, I'm not against it, I've done it before, I just rather own what I have. Idk why, maybe just a moral thing.
Another interesting thing I'd like to give an example of: While I see no problem in downloading a pirated copy of software, for example a game, I DO have a problem with using that illegal copy to access official online servers. Buying the game in those instances is basically buying a license to use the official game servers, which ARE the real property of someone other than yourself. It's OK in my view if you access unofficial servers or if you pay a monthly/yearly fee to access the servers as a separate service for example with Xbox Live.
I don't particularly like piracy, but I do it anyway. I pirate music, games, movies and some software.
The software I pirate is usually really expensive. There's no way in hell I'm going to buy something I probably won't use regularly, but play around with when I'm bored. Demo and trial versions of software don't appeal to me because you're not getting the full experience.Movies I pirate so I can watch them on my computer when I get bored. Almost all of the movies I've pirated are for someone else, though. I haven't really thought about buying movies because I normally don't watch them unless I'm really bored or something.Games… normally old ROMs fall under this category. I have pirated a few newer games though, but I don't play them very often. :(As far as music goes, I only pirate it to listen, and if I really like it I'll purchase the entire album. I'm currently planning on purchasing all of my pirated music because I like having the packaging.I've deciding against pirating and actually gotten a legitimate copy of photoshop =p
I don't pirate anything. I understand the amount of work that goes into different mediums and support the developers. Piracy is immoral.
I pirate old games from companies that have been swallowed up. I pirate old movies from studios that have been closed down. I pirate old music from artists that have been killed by heroin.
I pirate new games from massive companies that won't miss the profit. I pirate new movies from massive studios that don't need the profit. I pirate new music from artists that will be killed by heroin.I don't pirate anything indie or small. If I want a game by a couple of dudes in an attic, I'll buy it. If I particularly like a studio - i.e. Bungie, Valve - then I'll also cough up the dough (but that's a rare occurrence).I don't buy non-independent music - the only ones profiting are the evil record companies. I don't buy DVDs, because I don't care enough to pay for a movie. I'd happily wait until it's on TV if I couldn't download it.
I rarely buy games at full price, if I do they really have to deserve it. Again, I happily wait until they're in the bargain bins (why I've never bought a Wii or DS game, because they don't drop in price). To be honest, games released this week at £40 aren't much different from games released 2 years ago, now £4. As long as the majority of people don't realize this I'll get to keep doing it.No tears are lost when a big companie's stuff gets pirated. Only money wasted in the fight. Like the war on drugs.
Read Vance's post, and you'll know my opinion on the matter.
For Vance and Cosine: I own a purchased copy of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The disk became scratched and no longer works, and Nintendo wanted me to pay $40 for it to be 'repaired.' So instead I downloaded another copy off the internet that I can play on my hacked Wii. Is this acceptable to you? I just want to get a feel for where exactly you stand.