Negative

“Piracy is claimed to be a major problem for the software industry.” (Kathleen & Richard, 1991.) This could be considered true, as it is a major cause in the dramatic decrease in sales for products, and not only in the software industry. This is because demand for the product decreases if the software is being taken without permission and distributed through other means for free.  Moreover, it was stated that the amount lost was “estimated at as much as $9 to $17 billion” which is what usually leads to company bankruptcy. This could result in the prevention of further products made from the industry, which is why most people are against it. Not only is it considered immoral and unjust, but it also prevents the consumption of products for those who do purchase it. As stated previously, this also applies to other media sources such as music and film industries. Artists continue to lose income through the distribution of their songs, where directors lose revenue with decreases in ticket sales, all through Torrent websites.

It is because of the loss of sales that industries have started reinforcing the safety of their content through the law.  The government have attempted to pass bills such as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) that were “intended to strengthen protections against copyright infringement and intellectual property theft.” (Stephanie, 2012) However, these bills were not able to pass through the government and were scrapped. Despite this, a website which provided access to copyright material (known as Mega Upload) was taken down by government officials. As proven, extreme measures are being taken in order to prevent further pirating of material. Other methods of preventing piracy include fines and prison time. This is shown through New Zealand where those accused can have “penalties of up to NZ$15,000 ($12,000) to be paid to the copyright owner and if this is ineffective offenders can have their Internet account suspended for up to six months.” (Drew, 2011). Therefore, drastic action is being taken to not just attempt to stop piracy, but to at least restrict and provide possible prevention of further pirating activity.