AccursedTheory said:
AdmiralMemo said:
So, in summary, pirating music (and games, etc.) is wrong, but the problem doesn't lie completely at the end of the consumer.
Yes, it does. If you don't like it, don't buy it. It's a concept so simple, it's silly. And if you don't like it... why steal it in the first place?
As for my reply to you... sorry for the first part. The rest was aimed at everyone though.
True enough, but the time-honored "free sample" should be used more. People aren't going to know whether they like something or not unless they try it first. Cars have test drives. Games have demos. Books will have their first chapter printed in other books. People are resistant to change, and to change a habit, like going from not buying Band A's music (because you've never heard it) to buying it, will need something to get over that hurdle, and free, obligationless samples are something that does that. So, 20-second clips of all the songs, or 1 complete free song from each album (because styles change over time, so just because you like Band A's old stuff doesn't mean you'll like the new stuff) might be sufficient enough to appease the people.
The only other reason to not buy something you like is lack of funding. If Product X is over-priced, not many people will buy it, even if it's good, useful, entertaining, or whatever. Or if Person Y is poor and can't afford it, they won't buy it, even if they like it. This one is a bit more complex, and harder to fix. Over-pricing is pretty simple, but the main issue is that everyone wants more and more money, so prices will always continue to rise. The easy way to do that is to increase price without increasing the cost to make it. This is the way most companies work. (The smarter way is to keep the price the same, but decrease the cost to make it. That's typically trickier, but is better for the whole economy in the long run.)
Anyone wonder why you could get a gumball in the 50s for a penny or a nickel, but today, it takes 50 or 75 cents now to buy one? Prices have slowly risen, and the only reason we haven't complained much is that income has also risen to meet rising costs. Minimum wage has risen to about $7 per hour, give or take. Why? Because stuff costs so much to buy. Why does it cost so much? Companies raised prices to get more profit. A person making $7 per hour today isn't REALLY making anything over someone making $2 per hour in the 50s, even though they're making more than 3 times as much money.
