Poll: Pirating

[revjay]

I've done it. Back when Napster was Napster I used the hell out of it, the audio editing program I used way back when wasn't paid for but nowadays no. Is it wrong? By definition yes. Do I give a shit if others do it? Not so much.

As a side note although I don't do it I have no problem with people who 'try' a full version of a game before they decide to buy it.

 

[Gincairn]

The only things i've ever downloaded are things that I either will be buying when it comes out on DVD (tv shows mainly that hit the US well before the UK and so on) or things that I already own but perhaps in another format. Such as I own a cassette but it's gotten damaged so i'll download it on MP3 or CD format (which technically IS legal as you are allowed to make backups of items that you own.)

As to game piracy, I did that years ago in the days of the SNES (had a wildcard) but never since, the possibility of getting caught far outweighs the point of downloading it in the first place.

 

[SturmDolch]

I used to, but now I don't. It does take money away from hard-working artists, programmers, etc. If you think it's crap and wouldn't buy it anyways, don't download it. Can't get it anymore? Bullshit. There's always second hand stores, used copies, and THE INTERNET. Remember: Everything is on Ebay.

I was thinking more and more that it was wrong. What tipped me over was a duo of idiotic "Open-source movement" hippies crying in my Political Sciences class over the demise of The Pirate Bay. No thanks.

 

[Nouw]

I pirate movies, even though I feel kind of bad about doing it.
If a movie is really good, I'll buy the DVD.
I'll also buy CD's if I really love the band, not just for the music, but It feels good knowing I'm helping support them.

What this guy said.

Somethings are really rare so you kind of have to.

 

[joshthor]

depends on what it is. for instance, i pirate tv shows (though i dont consider that piracy since they are all available freely over the air, i just dont have time to watch them when they air) i also pirate software i need for school. paying 4000 dollars for a copy of 3ds max isnt an option for me.

in the past i have pirated almost all formats of stuff though, ebooks, music, movies and games, though i havent recently. i am completely against game piracy now because i love them. movies and music are so cheap i can afford them, and ebooks suck. books are only worth reading if they are in paper.

 

[ragestreet]

With the amount of it I do I should buy a parrot and an eyepatch and call myself CAPTAIN RAGESTREET SCOURGE OF THE DIGITAL SEAS!

 

[SnowCub]

Nope never. Stealing because its easy doesnt make it right.

 

[Yukichin]

Honestly? I pirate, a lot. However, if I wind up really enjoying something, when I have the money for it I will buy it. I do it often with music, but less often with games because I rarely pirate games.

 

[Hazy]

I've pirated one thing in my life, and it's because Reggie Fils-Aime of Nintendo refuses to localize in the West.

If you know what I'm talking about, you most likely agree that it's a shame. Even since they were offered a free translation by a group of hardcore fans who took matters into their own hands.
[sub]Still, I payed for a hard copy of it. So it's not like I got it completely free.[/sub]

But music and movies? I pay for. Shit, I even have a legitimate copy of Sony Vegas.

 

[blindthrall]

I agree with it as a form of balance. The corporations need to get fucked over. If it was maybe 30 years ago, I would disagree with pirating, since it is theft. But theft isn't always bad.

 

[TheSkaAssassin]

I only pirate from people who can afford it.

 

[Aurgelmir]

I decided not to answer the poll, as I didnt find an answer I liked

My point is this:
Pirating is wrong, but its far from bad for the consumer (As the companies wants you to think)

Jsut look at the things we have gained because of pirating:

World wide releases of games, movies and stuff. We get new and innovative solutions to distribution (Spotify, Steam etc); all as a way to combat illegal downloads.

I completely stopped downloading after I got Spotify (A free music streaming service for anyone not familiar with it), because I now have a good way of accessing music... (it also lead me to pay for premium Spotify).

Thing is I like Piracy because it pushes the studios to think in new ways, it puts the ball in our court. Its no longer them who make the rules.

PS: Piracy is not theft. If I stole a game from the store, the store can no longer make money off that game. If I pirate the game, the game has alreay been sold to someone, and money has changed hands. Only thing is I get to enjoy something I didnt pay for... but in that case borrowing a game is piracy too...
Piracy /= Theft. Piracy = Maybe a loss in sales...

Then again I might not pay for the game if I cant pirate it... since I pirate the games I deem unworthy of my limited money supply.

 

[The Heik]

I tend to only pirate songs for free as a sampler. If I think that the artist or band is good I'll buy their songs, and hope that the "funding" will make them create even more great songs

 

[TheJackel2008]

Ok I have to be honest here... well nearly all my 360 games are pirated but I only do this because I like to know if the games are worth the money, if I like the game I'll buy it but most of the time I buy them on the PS3 so I can play them online and also I have a lot of pirated PS2 games but most of them are about four or five years old or quite hard to find like the Silent Hill, Jak and Dexter and Ratchet & Clank series (which I feel guilty for telling my dad to download them)..... I hope the police don't come smashing through my window.

'Hears helicopter noise'

''OH SHIT'

 

[Zeromaeus]

I used to, but now I don't. It does take money away from hard-working artists, programmers, etc. If you think it's crap and wouldn't buy it anyways, don't download it. Can't get it anymore? Bullshit. There's always second hand stores, used copies, and THE INTERNET. Remember: Everything is on Ebay.

I was thinking more and more that it was wrong. What tipped me over was a duo of idiotic "Open-source movement" hippies crying in my Political Sciences class over the demise of The Pirate Bay. No thanks.

Mother 3. Period.
It isn't available in the US. It was never translated. Its no longer for sale in Japan. It never had an official translation so you have to patch it, which is very very frowned upon in itself. Anyone in America, Europe, or Not-Japan should be relatively justified in downloading, patching, and playing this game.

 

[Deleted]

I heard an undercover cop joined the forums recently. So with that in mind, I never pirate.

 

[ReincarnatedFTP]

I don't do it often, but every now and then. I haven't recently.
I don't really give a damn either way though. The companies have the right to sell their shit at whatever price to see if people will still buy and pirates have their opportunity to get around it.
I don't see is as some big moral issue, because as far as I can see, it's not actually physically harming anyone, although it can be considered theft of intellectual property. The limits and bounds of intellectual property and how long copyrights should last and blah blah blah is a debate within a debate on this, so I don't wanna get into that.

I don't know, I don't feel like I'm fighting the man or whatever, but I don't really feel like I'm harming anybody either, I just want something for free and in most cases with music (sometimes movies), to find an all around good album/movie that I will purchase. I'm not some moral paragon standing up to the evil companies and I'm not some bloodthirsty wretch who wants all your artistic endeavors to fail through a lack of actual purchases. I'm just a self-interested individual, and if I'm right I'm right, if I'm wrong I'm wrong.

 

[FoolKiller]

I think that it may be legally wrong but not necessarily morally.

Things like Suikoden II which are near impossible to get for a reasonable price I would agree with pirating as the game is nearly 200 USD on eBay.

 

[Surreysmith]

the amount singers and actors are paid is phenominal anyway the amount they charge cinemas is outragous, I doubt a few thousand people downloading a film is going to put a dent in the profits of the fat cats.