In Hong Kong, it is not unusual to find shops and street stalls with lots of pirated CDs and computer software on sale.
Of course, it is illegal to buy or sell such items, but I wonder if we should be thinking of piracy as a serious crime.
Copyright owners describe piracy as a form of theft. However, what does a copyright owner really lose if I make a copy of his work? I think he only loses an opportunity to make money from me, but he does not really lose anything that is concrete.
In a free market, it is natural that producers want to make money and consumers want to save it. I do not think moral arguments apply here. If it is really so wrong for consumers to save money by buying pirated products, then why is it morally acceptable for the producers of these products to make big profits by imposing copyright royalties? A pirated music CD, with nearly the same sound quality as a legal one, costs about $20. Even at such a low price a pirate can make a profit. So is it reasonable to sell a legitimate CD at $100 or more? Surely this indicates that the motive behind the invention of copyright is greed. Record companies and computer software corporations complain that piracy has been economically harmful to their businesses. To some extent this is true, but they seem to be exaggerating their losses. If the effect of piracy on them had been as devastating as they claim, they would have all closed down by now. While it is true thousands of pirated products are sold, thousands of legal copies are also sold. Just look at the annual profits of the biggest computer software corporation in the world Microsoft and it becomes clear that the effects of piracy have been insignificant.
I think piracy can help promote legitimate products. The low-priced pirated music discs and computer software that are available, stimulate consumption and so help to promote singers and computer programs. This can mean, for example, that a popular singer will sell more concert tickets. Therefore, it is nonsense to suggest that piracy only has a negative effect on legal products. Because of the competition from pirated products, I have seen a drop in prices for legitimate material.
For example, in some convenience stores and supermarkets, VCDs are selling for as low as $20 for two. The existence of piracy helps prevent copyright owners from cheating consumers. Without piracy, computers and music would be the exclusive preserve of the rich.