Is piracy a serious issue for game developers?

[feriblan]

Fascinating, but I don't really understand why there is a problem.
Someone writes a book and decides "you can use the ideas in my book, if you pay a certain price."
Now if you want to use the book, you pay the price, and if you don't ... you don't.
It's the same decision everytime you want to have/use/enjoy something you do not have, but someone else has. Either you pay the given price or you don't use/have/enjoy it. It doesn't really matter if it hurts the other person one bit. It also doesn't matter, if you can afford to buy the book. If you can't, than you must live without it. It's that simple.
Or perhaps this example:
You want to drive with a Porsche. Another person has one. He works from 9.00 to 17.00 h, so he can't use it. Should you be allowed to take his car without his consent during this time(you pay for gas and any possible damages, you even leave some money for the useage - it would not hurt him and he can't use it anyway)?
No. If you use someone elses work or property, you should only do so with his consent. And if he only gives his consent when you pay a certain amount of money, than you should pay it. Or you must go without said work or property.

 

[Psionicist]

I think the answer can be found in aggressive prosecution.

Of course, you're a genius! If you sue your customers, only then will they buy your products!

I think it's fascinating the only western country in the world where regular people like yourself actually want kids "aggressively prosecuted" for a misdemeanor is the country with the most lobbying and anti "piracy"-propaganda. In this thread, every single one of the most "profilic" anti-piracy members live in the US.

Do you feel better after your two minute hate? If not, here are two pictures you can scream at:
http://www.drugs.indiana.edu/graphics/photographs/marij2.gif
http://www.pa-aware.org/assets/images/who/C-6.jpg

 

[Storm Raven]

Of course, you're a genius! If you sue your customers, only then will they buy your products!

Thieves are not customers.

 

[Storm Raven]

I personally do not believe people should be able to earn ideas, however lucrative these ideas may be, or restrict the right of another to speak or write what he wants, even if what he says may hurt them financially.

Copyright holders don't earn ideas, they come up with them. Copyright seeks to promote the creation and publication of new works of authorship. Without a financial incentive to do so, many individuals wouldn't bother making new stuff, and many of those who do wouldn't bother publishing them for public consumption.

 

[Wayside]

I think it's fascinating the only western country in the world where regular people like yourself actually want kids "aggressively prosecuted" for a misdemeanor is the country with the most lobbying and anti "piracy"-propaganda. In this thread, every single one of the most "profilic" anti-piracy members live in the US.

Or, hey, maybe it's because most ENWorlders are American period. I probably pirate more than anyone else here and, like most pirates, I'm also American. Little logic please.

 

[Yair]

Copyright seeks to promote the creation and publication of new works of authorship. Without a financial incentive to do so, many individuals wouldn't bother making new stuff, and many of those who do wouldn't bother publishing them for public consumption.

I agree copyright (and patent, etc.) laws were instituted to promote the creation and elaboration of new ideas. I just don't think people have a basic right to have future possible ideas. I think they have a right of free speech (including copying), though, and that this right should be tempered by other rights, not by commercial or ideaological reasons.

 

[Psionicist]

Thieves are not customers.

What do you mean with "thieves"?

Because If you have actually read this thread, you can clearly see those who download material also buy it.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

Thieves are not customers.

Sure they are. I "steal" music online all the time then go buy the CD. Really isn't much else to do if you are into underground metal and don't want to waste money on CD's that only have one good song.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I know that it hurts publishers to see their products that only sold 30 copies in the open market proliferate 150 copies in the black market, but how do you know if you could actually capture profits from those 150 copies?

Name another product where you can use that logic and still feel ethical. "Sure, I took some apples from Farmer Brown's orchard, but he has acres of fruitful trees...do you really think he'd have sold the 20 I took?" Methinks Farmer Brown may start pulling out "Ol' Bess" and loadin' her with more than buckshot.

Better yet, can you show me an ethics system that would agree with taking someone's work without compensation? Even Marx wouldn't take property from the IP creator- he'd take control of copyright away from the creator's capitalist employer to return it to the IP creator.

(And if you are one of those who must drag out the saw about non-monetary compensation...tell me what non-monetary compensation the victim of piracy recieves.)

In this thread, every single one of the most "profilic" anti-piracy members live in the US.

It has nothing to do with my country of residence and everything to do with watching my clients not being able to recoup their costs because their work is being sold by a Russian pirate or being "shared" by "fans."

Quite simply, a lot of IP gets produced in the US because we protect it so vigorously.

Believe me, you can show your producer, agent, engineer, editor, session player, fabricator, printer, distributor or whomever evidence that your stuff is being pirated and THEY WON'T CARE- they want to be paid for THEIR work. So will the guy who rented you the studio, or the credit card company or bank (with a line of credit) you paid them ALL with in order to simplify things.

I attended a meeting hosted by the Dallas Bar Association with one of the guys behind DOOM in which he was discussing a future project. He talked about investors dumping millions of dollars into the project. Do you think his investors would listen to a piracy sob story when it came time to pay off their notes?

They might listen, but they wouldn't give a damn. It would be "Pay up or get sued" time.

 

[The Grumpy Celt]

This is becoming vulgar and nationalistic.