• merc@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    Piracy has never been stealing.

    When you steal something, the real issue is that the other person is deprived of some tangible item they used to have.

    When you “pirate”, you’re merely violating a copyright. The government granted someone a monopoly on the expression of an idea, and you’re not respecting the government’s decision on that item’s exclusivity.

    • Apytele@sh.itjust.works
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      1 day ago

      And like. I’d be fine with that if the primary function in practice was to ensure the original creator gets financially compensated for their work and then they can pay for copyright controlled distribution services if that helps therm make sure they get paid but that is not why or how current law is used and I’m kinda losing that it even can be.

      • merc@sh.itjust.works
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        1 day ago

        Right. Copyright is supposed to be for the good of the population. In order to encourage people to create things, they’re given a short monopoly on it after which it enters the public domain. The original copyright term was 14 years, I think.

        The new setup is absurd. The public doesn’t benefit for more than a century, at which point the copyrighted item is probably of next to no value.

        And, like you said, the artist rarely benefits. Writers are probably the ones who come the closest to benefitting. They only have to pay their agent a cut, their publisher, then, finally Amazon. With advances, etc. you have to wonder how much they get paid for each additional book sold. Musicians basically don’t make anything anymore, with the bullshit that Spotify (partially owned by the record companies) does. And then movies, TV, and other video stuff, the amount that creators get is massively watered down, and that’s after the “Hollywood accounting” makes profits from even successful things disappear.

        I really don’t respect copyright anymore because it doesn’t benefit me (a member of the public) nor does it benefit the artist. It’s just a tool to hand money to certain entertainment conglomerates.

    • 1984@lemmy.today
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      23 hours ago

      Sure but game companies need to get paid or they won’t make games. Right? Luckily there are many others who pay for games so you can pirate, but without them paying, there wouldn’t be a product you can pirate.

      I just picked a game company as an example but of course you understand this.

      • merc@sh.itjust.works
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        14 hours ago

        Of course you understand that people made creative things before copyright existed. You understand that that happened when the copyright term was 14 years. You understand that it happened before Warner Bros. Discovery existed.

        You understand that it is possible for a company to make games without requiring a 120 year copyright term, right?

        • 1984@lemmy.today
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          12 hours ago

          Yes people make creative things, but they don’t make games that requires a game studio and give them away for free. I feel that you should understand this. Perhaps you don’t.

          I pirated as a kid too because I didn’t have money and I loved games. But I knew that others paid for their games and that’s why they could make them.

          Now as an adult, I’m paying for my games. Because I have the money and it’s worth it. If you don’t, that’s fine too. I dont judge. But just quit the stupid copyright argument. :)

          • merc@sh.itjust.works
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            2 hours ago

            Yes people make creative things, but they don’t make games that requires a game studio and give them away for free

            They used to, they called it shareware. It could happen again.

            Look, if my personally ignoring copyrights for certain things causes certain media companies to go bankrupt and causes a whole re-think of how the creative economy should work, I think that’s a good thing. I don’t think my choices are that powerful, but we can always hope.

            • 1984@lemmy.today
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              2 hours ago

              I get it, I also think capitalism is a very low consciousness system where you destroy everything in the end. I often feel this place is ridiculous because of that. Some kind of school for the most retarded. However, I got put here so… Maybe I’m not so smart.

          • crapwittyname@feddit.uk
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            8 hours ago

            The “copyright argument” they made was that pirating isn’t stealing, it’s violating copyright, and (implied) that these are two different things. I’m pretty sure this argument hasn’t been knocked down yet, so a bit premature of you to call it stupid.

    • mHtt@lemmy.ca
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      1 day ago

      Exactly. It’s like jury nullification, but for copy rights. The government serves us not visa versa.