Quote:
Originally Posted by Libertine
If you want to argue that copyright infringement is bad, argue that copyright infringement is bad.
Just because copyright infringement might be bad, however, does not mean that "theft" is the appropriate term.
The mere act of copyright infringement does not necessarily result in any tangible damages. It is entirely possible for someone to commit copyright infringement upon works which he would not have bought either way, with the copyright infringement thus resulting in no damages whatsoever.
Now, it can still be argued that this is immoral. However, this would require other arguments than the ones needed to deem physical theft immoral.
Simply put: don't just commit a logical fallacy and call it theft. Instead, make a strong argument explaining why copyright infringement itself is immoral.
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You sound like someone who is trying to spin a web that is tight enough and filled with enough bullshit that it obscures reality and makes you feel better about what you are doing.
Is downloading copyrighted music and movies without paying for them illegal? Yes.
Is it theft? Yes.
Is copyright infringement and theft essentially the same thing when it comes to the download of music and movies? Yes.
Here is why the argument that you aren't hurting them if you would have never bought it in the first place doesn't hold any water. Say for example a band releases a record. I have never heard of the band, but hear their song on the radio and I like it. I'm not the kind of guy who buys a record after hearing just one song so I would never actually go out and buy the CD. I jump on my favorite torrent site and download the CD. I just broke the copyright laws and I stole from the band. How though? I was never going to buy it so it's not like they are out any money. Simple. I have a copy of their product that I didn't pay for. They don't get paid. The record company doesn't get paid. Any producers/musicians/writers that worked on it don't get paid. But I still have it. That is theft.
The idea is simple. If a band records a record and you want it, you pay an agreed upon price and you get the songs. You now have the songs in your possession and you didn't pay for them. That is stealing. The fact that you would have never purchased the CD in the first place is just semantics.