Why does internet piracy happen?

Answer 1

There are many answers of this question. Here are some of the most common factors in causing computer piracy:

1. Customers may perceive that the prices are too high or that they are getting a poor value. So rather than get "ripped off," they steal the digital product. This is a self-perpetuating problem, since the more people steal, the higher the prices will be, and the higher the prices, the more people will steal. Photoshop is a good example of the effects of theft on prices. Nowadays, the latest version is about $1000 USD. Maybe if people didn't steal over the years, it would run you about $150.

2. This is often a crime among those in a low-income bracket. There are both casual (personal use) and commercial pirates in this group. Those who cannot afford to go see a movie or whose parents won't take them or allow them to go may resort to file-sharing to get too see the movie. Then there are those who simply cannot make ends meet and steal and duplicate movies for a fee. So a bad economy would be the cause here.

3. There is also "social piracy." This probably shouldn't be considered piracy since copyright law has a fair use clause. But people may take 3-20 second audio ("sound bites") or video clips and incorporate them into videos on YouTube. It is so easy to want to latch onto something popular and use it to draw attention to yourself. That has traditionally been allowed, but the industry and government are cracking down. This is only considered computer piracy because it is labeled as such, and it similar to making drugs illegal. Tighter laws only increase the level of crime and do nothing to deal with the real problems.

4. There is also "activism piracy" or "ideological piracy." That is when someone steals products from an industry, organization, or business they don't think should exist. Someone who is against pornography might, for instance, pirate it heavily and give it away in an attempt to destroy the market for it. Why buy it if you can get it for free? So the "legitimate" market does not make enough income to produce more. Groups which oppose traditional morality have been known to steal materials from pro-family groups. There are places online encouraging people to order tons of donation materials from various ministries and pro-family groups, not give donations, and then destroy the materials.

Answer 2

Easy, because it's easy and convenient.

internet piracy is the sharing of copyrighted material without permission over the internet.

Movies, episodes, music, books, anything that can be converted to digital form. It is incredibly easy to share and find popular content on the internet

and incredibly difficult to prevent sharing.

Human beings tend to go the easiest route. There are other factors like ethics, risk assessment and so on but we are definitely programmed for efficiency.

Discs and books require that we order online

or go to a store, give up currency and in the case of discs swap them whenever we want to watch ore listen to something else. Aside from the financial side it's just a lot easier to have a thousand movies and episodes a few clicks away on a hard drive. You can watch any of them at any time, in any order.

Asking why internet

piracy happens is kinda like asking why fast food happens... it's because we like the convenience. We don't have to process it ourselves and it's cheaper. We may even prefer it to alternatives, it takes less time overall and the experience is pleasurable and comfortable.

As for the legal implications... almost everyone who has ever been guilty of internet

piracy has not been brought to justice. There are so many "pirates" out there, and the internet "sea" is so vast, it's a practical impossibility to stop it. As for censoring the internet with filters and such, there are numerous ways to exchange information anonymously and without revealing the true nature of the content, look up "encryption" for an example. The only way to ever truly prevent internet piracy is to destroy the internet, but I believe the public would simply build thousands of smaller nets and connect them to one another by various means. They've tasted freedom and won't give it up without a fight.

Some say that the current business model of controlled distribution of content is simply no longer realistic, with the advent of the internet. One person with a computer can make anything digital in nature available to the entire world of internet connected computers simultaneously, once the information is out there it's out there. There are many other ways to make money besides upfront payment for distribution, like product placement, merchandising and fund raising prior to production.

Ultimately, internet piracy happens because it's more convenient and some people see it as a victimless crime, or don't even think about the legal implications at all. Many of these "pirates" are school children who just learn this skill from friends, perhaps even before being told that it's technically a crime.

Answer 3

Because hackers exist, and no matter what restrictions, there will be always pirates

Answer 4

It's very easy, and relatively cheap.