Software Piracy:
A Worldwide Problem Software piracy is defined as the illegal copying of software for commercial or personal gain. Software companies have tried many methods to prevent piracy, with varying degrees of success. Several agencies like the Software Publishers Association and the Business Software Alliance have been formed to combat both worldwide and domestic piracy. Software piracy is an unresolved, worldwide problem, costing millions of dollars in lost revenue. Software companies have used many different copy protection schemes. The most annoying form of copy protection is the use of a key disk. This type of copy protection requires the user to insert the original disk every time the program is run. It can be quite difficult to keep up with disks that are years old. The most common technique of copy protection requires the user to look up a word or phrase in the program's manual. This method is less annoying than other forms of copy protection, but it can be a nuisance having to locate the manual every time. Software pirates usually have no trouble "cracking" the program, which permanently removes the copy protection. After the invention of CD-ROM, which until lately was uncopyable, most software companies stopped placing copy protection in their programs. Instead, the companies are trying new methods of disc impression. 3M recently developed a new technology of disc impression which allows companies to imprint an image on the read side of a CD-ROM. This technology would not prevent pirates from copying the CD, but it would make a "bootleg" copy differ from the original and make the copy traceable by law enforcement officials (Estes 89). Sometimes, when a person uses a pirated program, there is a "virus" attached to the program. Viruses are self-replicating programs that, when activated, can damage a computer. These viruses are most commonly found on pirated computer games, placed there by some malignant computer programmer. In his January 1993 article, Chris O' Malley points out that if piracy was wiped out viruses would eventually disappear (O' Malley 60). There are ways that a thrifty consumer can save money on software without resorting to piracy. Computer companies often offer discounts on new software if a person has previously purchased an earlier version of the software. Competition between companies also drives prices low and keeps the number of pirated copies down (Morgan 45). People eventually tire or outgrow their software and decide to sell it.
Exploring Software Piracy Software Piracy refers to the unauthorized use or copying of software. When a user purchases a software program, he does not purchase the software itself, but the right to use the software. This right is governed by a licence. When you purchase a boxed software product, you receive a CD, manuals and a licence agreement. This licence generally allows you to use the software on one workstation.
Hamister, J., & Braunscheidel, M. (2013). Software piracy and intellectual property rights protection. Academy of Information & Management Sciences Journal, 16(1), 15-35. Retrieved from EBSCOhost
Piracy is the copying of copyrighted material without permission from the author. Because technology is always changing, there are no fail safe methods of preventing piracy. Soon after a new preventative method comes out, someone finds a way around it, making pr...
Avast! Ye scurvy dog! This is the image usually conjured up when one is discussing piracy. At one point in time, this was correct - sailors roamed the seas freely pillaging merchant vessels. Now a days, Piracy has mainly slipped underground. Chances are, you may know a pirate personally without knowing the crimes they commit. For these crimes are not public, instead they are committed online. Filesharing is on the rise, much to the parent media corporation's chagrin.
Software piracy is a complicated issue with no simple solutions or simple causes. First we’ll try to explain the reason why people might commit software piracy, and then we’ll attempt to explore how they might rationalize there actions.
One type of protection is used on software products. This protection comes in two pieces. The first piece prevents a user from copying the CD. This is usually done by having a portion of the CD unreadable by CD drives. The second portion of the protection requires that the user insert the CD in the drive in order to use the application. This check involves validating the CD as an original CD which would include look...
Physical piracy-the copying and illegal sale of hard-copy CDs, videotapes, and DVDs-costs the music industry over $4 billion a year worldwide and the movie industry more than $3.5 billion. These numbers do not factor in the growing (and difficult to measure) problem of Internet piracy, in which music and movies are transferred to digital format and copies are made of the resulting computer file. Journalist Charles C. Mann explains why Internet piracy has the potential to be vastly more damaging to copyright industr...
paid for. The pirate has a set of excuses for his actions: prices are too high;
Piracy in the open seas is becoming more serious problem. The waters off Somalia are where ships and tankers face the greatest threat from pirates.
The PC industry is just over 20 years old. In those 20 years, both the quality
With the popularity of the Internet, sales for CDs, DVDs, Movies, and many other products have increased. Along with the increase of sales has brought forth an ever increasing problem of illegal media being downloaded. Programs such as Bittorent, Kazaa, and other direct-connect networking programs have allowed the transferring of such illegal media. Downloading song files from the Internet over a free peer to peer network is the moral equivalent of shoplifting music CDs from the local mall.
Pirated software directly impacts consumers because: · It often lacks key elements and documentation, and it always carries no warranty protection or upgrade options. · These untested, counterfeit discs may be infected with viruses that will damage your hard drive and may cripple your entire network. · If they copy software at work, users put themselves and their company at risk by pirating a product protected by copyright laws.
In today’s technological age and consumer-driven economy, there is no doubt that media piracy and file sharing are in demand and makes a big business. Not only the so called “bootlegged” materials cost less, but most of it also managed to completely imitate the quality of the original materials. It is much easier to people to download movies or music online or buy bootlegged DVDs for 5 dollars than to watch the movie in theaters or pay for the whole CD when there is only one song that the person likes. People know about the possible consequences of these actions, but they do not have a choice especially in these times of economy recession, plus everyone nowadays is doing it, so it would not be considered such a big deal at all if they illegally download or purchase copyright materials. On the other hand if everyone is doing it, why there are still some people getting caught? Not that they should not be punished, but being put into jail and paying a fine that is ridiculously impossible to pay are just practically harsh. Maybe if those people are business tycoons of counterfeit materials, but the fact that most of those people getting caught are just ordinary people trying to be practical and doing what the rest of the world is doing which is doing these “illegal” downloading or purchasing bootlegged movies and music. The government and the entertainment industries are using ordinary people as scapegoats and have been doing draconian methods in moms, children and maybe even old people by suing them for downloading or sharing pirated materials for free, because of the fact that they are having a hard time pursuing the big time “master minds,” who are making a profit out of someone else’s work.
All around the world people connected to the internet are downloading free digital content through P2P file sharing software.
One of today’s biggest problems and controversies is what is known as digital media piracy or internet piracy. This term refers to the illegal trade of media that is currently protected under copyright laws. Digital piracy is commonly seen in obtaining music or video files, video games, and software for free when it would have alternatively cost money. This problem is most prevalent in countries such as the Columbia, Germany, and China. As the media industries have claimed that digital piracy is a heinous crime and is causing great harm to their business, law enforcement agencies have begun to look into the issue to some extent. To solve this issue, agencies must know why digital piracy is occurring and why it so prevalent. The problem