What is your opinion of piracy? I don't mind it to be honest. I admit, if I made something and someone stole it and put it on the Internet free to download I'd be mad but these people who make games and movies and all that have millions of dollars and live in 5-floor mansions. So don't you think a poor person (like me) should be able to get stuff for free if they really want to?

I really don't mind as well. I would be mad at someone who stole my work and put it up for free, but there are many people who don't get to see stuff like that because of issues with the economy. Besides, I'm one of those people who watch these type of things for free

I don't see a big issue with "piracy", but I also see from the owner of the music, or movies or the owner of games point of view, that they are putting lots of money and time into making a good product, and people are getting it without having to pay any money, an they are ultimately losing money by creating the things that people want. I only don't see a legitimate problem with it because I personally, don't always follow 100% of Piracy laws. (hypothetically)

piracy is a tough issue. I think it's wrong to take things without paying for them. Plain and simple. If there is a price tag attached to an item then you should pay that price.

However, I think the price we are charged for many of these items is ridiculous. I'm not paying $60+ for a game I'll play once, maybe twice. I'm also not paying $10+ to go see a movie in the theaters (well, $20+ for tickets and $20+ for snacks it seems).

It's a horrible spiral of increasing costs. I don't think having the price as high as it is is helping. I bet if the price were dropped on a lot of these items that people would be more willing to pay. And if it were easier to obtain digital copies of things. Make legitimate digital copies common. Drive the piracy market out of business so to speak.

Not trying to start something but you guys are mostly fine with it unless it happens to you. I am not very fine with it at all. It is very dishonest.

I don't mind about it too. If they wanted to reduce those illegal copies, they could at least try to reduce the cost of the authentic products.
I mean I know a guy, who sells illegal copies of video games for 10euros, but the authentic game usually costs more than 50euros
I wouldn't mind buying the authentic game, if it costed 20 or 25 euros(although I could buy 2 illegal copies with the same amount of money), but I can't afford giving so much money for just a single game
I think authentics are overpriced.
I'm not saying it's right, but if authentics keep being so expensive, piracy will rise more and more.

Intellectual property is protected under the law, so piracy is wrong. However, we have to consider if there is any reasonable way to protect information from piracy once it is released to the public. They have every right to go after the pirates, but it's becoming more and more difficult to protect the data from being copied illegally, so it may be more efficient to find another way to make money off of it.

I agree with noelia, if the prices of things just increase more and more the issue of piracy will increase more and more. And I have also seen some stories about people getting arrested for getting pirated goods. Really? If cops and the FBI waste their time tracking down people who wanted to watch Toy Story 3 for free when there are big-ticket rapists and murderers out there, I don't know what's happening to this world.

Well "piracy" only depends on the factor of profit. If I produced something and had an income from it, then to have someone else come along and profit off me, I'd feel violated.

but you wouldn't feel violated if the thing you produced to earn an income was being stolen by people who can easily afford to pay for it?!?

I understand that piracy is a type of theft... you really can't know for sure if the theft is hurting your profit, I don't have a problem with watching a pirated movie, but I wouldn't buy one. Then there's different circumstances that are more severe piracy I think.

Plain and simple piracy is wrong and those who hide behind the "it is too expensive and I am too poor" excuse are just as bad as people selling pirated copies of things for profit.

To those who hide behind the excuse of not being able to afford it because the price. These things you are talking about are LUXURIES! They are not necessities. Therefore your logic is flawed! You do not need the videogames/movies/music. you want them. Those things are luxuries in life and you just complain because they are too high priced?

Also 5 story houses? Are you serious? Go after actors maybe but video games take years (3 to 5+ seems the normal now, possibly 7 is more realistic)to make a game. Everyone that works on the game has to be paid a salary before the game launches meaning games are in the red to begin with.

I'd love to have a big screen tv and an awesome car. Do I need them, no! I want them. So why do I not go out and steal them? Is it because they are physical while games/movies/music is digital? No. Stealing is stealing there is no grey zone.

Get out of the poor me syndrome and man up to stealing it outright because the only person you are helping is yourself.

As for prices, if pirating wasn't so rampant and people took a stand and did not buy tese high priced things, it would force producers to lower prices.

This is the way I see it. These ppl r makin a profit. we arent taking bt taking the COPIES. All legal copies are sold so the producer is gaining the profit he intended to gain

I agree alot with what Jmc1097. There is, to me, a fairness issue here. Okay so your Jayzee and your gonna get mad at me in my 2 bedroom apartment for downloading your song w/o paying that is freaking redic. I already see this leading to my governmental views, so I'll just leave it at that.

Edit: If you are an artist r u even supposed to care about the money, shouldn't it be about getting your expressions out there for people to experience?

Mabus hit the nail on the head of this issue for sure. Video games, music and movies are all luxuries.... although we've started to treat them all like things we have a right to have.

If it wasn't for piracy, there would be no USA. We stole it from the native americans and now they get to live on little peices of land being harassed and abused all the time by Us white ppl.

I don't care how rich the person is, if you steal their work and post it on the interwebz, that wrong. I would be mad if somebody else posted my work someplace else. It's about the character of the whole thing. The whole "I'm poor, I get it for free" thing is messed up. You expect free stuff. Heres an idea- Work hard, manage income, get cash, buy whatever you want that you STEAL for free from the internet. I'm suprised some of you are ok with it, i'm not. It's not right. I would rather be dirt poor than knowing I've stole somebody else's work.