SEIV is being Pirated

[Instar]

One thing that irks me is that here, you can prosecute it. In other countries, its not enforced at all. China even condones it really, they steal all the software and stuff. Ticks me off, it does

[LazarusLong42]

The worst thing about pirating is there is more to it than the simplest ethical dilemma possible. Take this for instance:

Joe Blow in Nowhereton, Outback, AU, buys SE4 through Shrapnel... it'll arrive in two weeks. Is it now ethical for him to download the full Version from a warez site or wherever? Technically, as soon as the credit card transaction is processed, he is the holder of an SE4 license.

Discuss. Can anyone give me a good reason why it is unethical for Joe to download the full Version elsewhere while waiting for the CD which has already been paid for?

(N.B. I don't support pirating. I do, however, support interesting ethical/philosophical problems )

LL

[Richard]

Because by downloading it he adds one more vote to why the warez site handler should stay in business and probably makes him some money via banners.

Plus if you have to go through some of the sites voting mechanisms you help him that way.

Any download is a vote to the legitimacy of warez.

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Sarge is coming...

Richard Arnesen
Director of Covert Ops
Shrapnel Games
http://www.shrapnelgames.com

[geoschmo]

I think the distinction is in transmitting or sharing copies of the software. Warez doesn't verify that you purchased the software, so whether or not it's ethical for you to download it, it's definelty unethical and illegal for them to upload it.

I myself have copies of SEIV on two separate PC's. That may be a technical violation of the copyright. But I would NEVER make a copy for someone, or give or sell my computer with the copy loaded on it to someone.

Geoschmo

[mobil]

Distribution is clearly very important to avoid piracy. I live in Norway, and sometimes games come to Norway several months after release in US or the rest of Europe (Birth of the Federation and Imperium Galactica II are examples of this).

When ppl await games like Master of Orion III (to be released next spring), it is very important to have a worldwide release in order to make piracy less interesting. My concience tells me not to download from the net, but I cannot buy the game either until someone decides its time for a Norwegian release.

One alternative is to order the game from the net, but that is only an option if I can download the game directly and pay with visa card. If i have to order a cd then i will have to go through a huge expensive paper mill. I have tried this once when i ordered a football kit and a football video from England. I had to pay VAT (norwegian VAT on top of the English one ofcourse), postal handling fee, import tax and finally VAT on the import tax. All in all £40 for importing £70 of goods.

I dont like piracy, and i buy all games that I think are great (from reviews, testing at friends or testing demos/illegal Versions). Still I admit that I could not stand waiting 3 months for Birth of the Federation and I played an illegal Version and discovered that it was crap. Therefore i never bough the game when it finally arrived. The same has happened bout three times with other games.

What I am trying to say here is that the game distribution is important because games have a very short life before something better comes by. "Everyone" reads the same reviews on the net, and ppl expect to find the games in the store soon after a game has gone gold. Dont expect ppl to read about the hottest new game for months before they can try it themselves.

This might not be a big issue for ppl living in US og UK, but for me its a huge annoyance.

[tesco samoa]

Thanks BeeDee10


For correcting that post. I was going into to correct it. But I will leave it as it stands now.

Have a good day.



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L? GdX $ Fr C++ SdT T+ Sf* Tcp+ A M++ MpTM ROTS Pw+ Fq+ Nd Rp++ G+

[Puke]

quote:

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Originally posted by tesco samoa:
What does everyone think of music??? Along the same lines???

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i think that music piracy is actually generating more interest in music, and the Last studies i read on the topic actually placed music industry revenue at a significant gain since mp3 trading became popular. not that piracy is okay, and not that publishing lables are altruistic, but they are definitly wasting their time trying to fight something that is making them money, rather than trying to legitimize it by developing ways to license trading of 'reduced quality' Versions of songs and to make even more money (on top of revenue from increased interest and free marketing) on Online music.

where as software piracy does nothing but cost people money. why in the world would you pirate a game that you enjoy from a small press publisher? you are just decreasing the chances that you will ever see a game like that again. you are not even helping yourself. THINK.

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"...the green, sticky spawn of the stars"
(with apologies to H.P.L.)

[disabled]

I enjoy such services as napster (even if Napster is dead and nothign can replace it) as a place I can preview music. I would like it even more if I could purchase songs on a song-by-song base as I could make my own CD's with all the songs I want. Honestly, screw 14.99 for a CD with 2 songs I want. I'd rather pay 24.99 for a CD with ALL songs I like.

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HADRIAN T. AVENTINE
admin@spaceempires.org
Administrator | SpaceEmpires.org

[Askan Nightbringer]

I have a friend who is in a band. They tour the world and stuff but never make enough money to make a career out of it. So all the band members have day jobs so they can live, play and tour.
One night at a gig, a fan runs up to him and tells him how much he likes their music and all that. He then tells him he downloaded the band's latest album off napster.
The fan got a punch in the face.

Now if you can justify to the artist/creator why its alright to rip them off then fair enough. If you can't then your just a thief, no different from the guy who steals you wallet except alot more cowardly (because you aren't facing your victims).

Askan
(Head developer for a product that gets pirated)

[Saxon]

Regarding music, let me ask tesco samoa if the music club he is part of returns some money to the artists/labels or not? I agree with you, 300% mark up is hard to swallow and I would be happier paying less, as long as some of it went back to the creator. If an Online retailer can give me the product I want with less mark up than that shop on Main Street, I will happily go to that store, as long as some of the cash makes it’s way back to the guy the artist.

The single song idea is great and, as Hadrian pointed out, paying more for a good CD is better than paying for a CD with only one good song on it. The music industry could do some creative things with current technology and still make good cash.

If I was the hypothetical guy who buys a SE4 license and then downloads it from a Warez site, I would follow up with an email to Richard suggesting that he investigate the possibility of creating a similar download procedure. We had to get some commercial anti virus software off the net and once our credit card cleared, they sent us a password. We then went to their site, entered the password and got a download. This allows legitimate purchasers quick access to product and skips the waiting. One could also offer a lower price, as no physical goods are created and no shipping and handling is incurred. Finally, you would never have back orders or overstocking problems.

However, I would also tell Richard that I work in the non-profit sector and don’t have a clue how to run a business, so he should take my ideas with a grain of salt!