Quote:
Originally Posted by Libertine
Downloading copyrighted materials isn't theft.
You have an orange. I take your orange. You don't have an orange anymore.
Theft.
You have a song. I take a copy of your song. You still have a song.
Not theft.
Illegal? Yes. Immoral? Possibly. Theft? No.
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That is a very facile and incorrect interpretation of the law. I think a child could understand that you wouldn't be stealing from the person who "shared" the song in this case, but from the artist who didn't get paid for the use of the song from you, and the thousands or perhaps millions of others who took, used and enjoyed the product or service without paying for it. There are many kinds of theft under the common law including theft of services, theft by deception and other abstract kinds of theft that do not actually involve the physical taking away of an object from it's owner.