I just posted about SOPA, and have some thoughts about why ‘piracy’ is a problem. I’m sure this has been said previously, but allow me to reiterate in my own words. First of all, the fact that we’ve allowed it to be branded as piracy is part of the problem – though the word infers some degree of rebelliousness, actual pirates are incredibly dangerous people that steal things on the seas, and possibly endanger lives. Digital file sharing does neither of the above.
Second, and I think that we’re almost at a point where this is universally acknowledged – theft is fundamentally different than file sharing. The inability to recognize this by traditional media providers has led to such ham-handed approaches as suing prospective customers for file sharing and, well, SOPA. Traditional theft means there is one object, and that object can only remain in one person’s possession. If another person takes that object, it leaves the other person without it. Not true of file sharing. The people that get this have been able to successfully harness the digital era, leaving people who are traditionally in charge of music, movies and games scrambling for some way to get back control.
Third, and most importantly, I borrow from Gabe Newell, founder of Valve: “Piracy is almost always a service problem and not a pricing problem.” EXACTLY. Traditional media companies suck at servicing the needs of the consumer. For a long time, they didn’t care, and didn’t have to care. They controlled a very linear distribution method, and anyone down the pike that didn’t like it could fuck off without getting a taste. Now channels of distribution and communication have multiplied. Sure, they’re uncomfortable with losing that control, but why are they seeking to legislate against the people that make their living? Why do they hate us? We love them. We give them tons of our money, all the time. This relationship is turning poisonous. Put some money into customer service. Put some money into bypassing theaters in a way that consumers will ENJOY. Do something creative, because coming after our quality of life is not doing anything constructive. Please stop legislating / suing us, and put that money into making awesome shit that makes us loyal customers. That’s right – we, as humans, are generally still loyal to products that we feel make our lives better. Imagine that, we’re not all assholes.
Of course piracy could just be a red herring in all of this – some people just have a compulsion to dictate the flow of other people’s lives.
