RecordingReview.com's View On Piracy

[brandondrury]

I've noticed several posts that have encouraged piracy in the past few days so I figured I'd go ahead and declare an official stance on this topic.

1) Piracy sucks - In the end everyone loses when people don't pay for the goods they consume. As was stated by our ****, cuddly member Garageband (paraphrased) "Stealing is wrong. Talk your way out of that one".

2) Morality Policing sucks - No one wants to be told how to live. We've all raped a few nuns in our day. (Did I say that out loud? ). If you really want to debate ethics, make a post in Irrelevant Stuff Here Forum. Being a butt pirate sucks, but being a preachy asshole isn't any better.

So, the official stance on piracy is this.....
Don't ask. Don't tell. Certainly don't encourage.

[TonyB]

I wholeheartedly agree with #1, but for #2 the folks responding to outright piracy claims isn't necessarily morality policing or preaching. If I see it in a thread, I'll more than likely respond to it, but I won't in a vacuum start preaching about the ethics of stealing software.

[garww]

The talk does not belong on this board, for sure. Grounds for punishment in my worn booklet.

[irawan gani]

before Napster, i used to have friends around my place to listen to the music that i would recommend and perhaps make tapes of them. and then they'd go out and buy the album themselves.

now we share mp3 versions of it and give our opinions. and THEN go out and buy them at the nearest CD store (if it is a good ALBUM).

and yes i always encourage people to BUY music.

[Audio~Geek]

When I notice threads about piracy I moderate them like this:
bunnies and kittens

[tatteredstudios]

Originally Posted by Audio~Geek

When I notice threads about piracy I moderate them like this:
bunnies and kittens

Good one ! I was wondering what the hell that was !!

[Audio~Geek]

It was "does anyone know how to crack pro tools" or something along those lines.

So, the official stance on piracy is this.....
Don't ask. Don't tell. Certainly don't encourage.

Exactly my position on it.

[ryanoliver]

This topic is taboo catch 22. Let's talk gear...just not how you acquired it. (Unless you paid for it ofcourse) To be fair, most pirates do include disclaimers like, "if you like it, go buy it" or "Try before you buy". It makes you wonder how much the software companies profit from people stealing it and then raving about how much they love it which creates more buzz and ultimately more sales. I think it's actually a symbiotic relationship, which I neither condemn nor condone. The software companies are fully aware of their products being pirated, I wonder why then more hasn't been done to prevent it. Hmmm.

[brandondrury]

It makes you wonder how much the software companies profit from people stealing it and then raving about how much they love it which creates more buzz and ultimately more sales.

It's certainly a possibility, but I feel it's a point that is dramatically overstated. I'm sure few companies can claim increases of sales due to piracy (either directly or not).

It's extremely difficult to gauge fate. How can you predict what a person would have bought if they were forced to purchase vs getting it for free? It's impossible.

All I know is if every male on the planet was neutered, the number of showers per day would plummet.

The software companies are fully aware of their products being pirated, I wonder why then more hasn't been done to prevent it. Hmmm.

Easy. There is no cure for the common cold. Actually, there is. Bleach will kill the little bacteria gadgets (I know NOTHING about medical junk). Fire will too. Of course, try drinking a gallon of bleach or jumping into your BBQ grill. It also kills the person too.

There have been many efforts to reduce piracy, but if the companies go too far with these measures, they'll completely alienate the people who actually pay for it. (In my view, Microsoft is guilty of this. I have three licenses of XP and I choose to run hacked copies. My life has been made too difficult by these pricks and their security....which clearly doesn't work anyway). The RIAA has tried to impose technology that essentially fucked the person who paid good money for the cd so that no one could steal it. The results were WAY worse than the piracy alone would have been. George Massenberg was telling us all about it when we toured Blackbird Studios during the Michael Wagener Workshop. He lost a TON of money because an album with excessive security crap was recalled.

Brandon



Brandon

[Metaltyme]

All I know is if every male on the planet was neutered, the number of showers per day would plummet.

This is my pick for "wittiest quote of the day!"

Easy. There is no cure for the common cold. Actually, there is. Bleach will kill the little bacteria gadgets (I know NOTHING about medical junk). Fire will too. Of course, try drinking a gallon of bleach or jumping into your BBQ grill. It also kills the person too.

+1 FTW! Brillaint analogy. Software manufacturers know on varying magnitudes that going overboard on inventing more extreme measures against piracy of their products can ultimately lead to shooting themselves in the proverbial foot.

Companies like Microsoft, with such monopolic market power, can afford to be extra anal about their anti-piracy measures, because (A) they don't have to have nearly as much compassion for the common consumer, as the average PC consumer remains unaware of other operating systems; and (B) many consumers aren't able to make such decisions in the first place, as most of their local retailers only carry Microsoft-ridden PCs (of course, MACs are beginning to market themselves better and becoming the exception).