Re: Re: What kind of pirate am I?

On Oct 7, 2010, at 5:00 PM, Daniel P. B. Smith wrote:

> If I already own a printed copy, _the author has been paid._ There's no reason I need to pay him again to read the same content again. He gets paid for his creative effort, not for ink on paper.
> 
> If I already own a printed copy, _the publisher has been paid_ for their marketing, the risk they took in acquiring the book, the cost of having a jacket designed, and so forth. If I already own the printed copy, there is no ethical reason why I should have to pay any more for an e-copy beyond the actual cost of production and a markup on that cost. If the book was, in fact, put into electronic form as part of the production process, the cost of the e-copy should be practically zero. If pirates have done the actual production, it didn't cost the publisher a thing and I don't owe the publisher a thing.
> 
> There may be a legal problem here--unfair, artificial law which protects unjust practices--assuming it does, and I say that because nobody seems sure of anything when it comes to intellectual property, and publishers habitually claim rights that they do not really have--but we are not talking about any ethical or moral problem.

So if you bought a hardcover copy, you think you have the right to steal a paperback copy? Because that's what you're saying, more or less. Sure, you say "cost of production"; it costs very little to produce a paperback, so do you think you should be able to buy it for a buck?.


Kirk

*Author of Take Control of iTunes 10: The FAQ*
http://www.mcelhearn.com/itunes
Twitter: @mcelhearn








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