Comments on: Give and Take, Music and Milkshakes http://equinox-of-insanity.com/2008/02/give-and-take-music-and-milkshakes/ Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:39:27 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Nima http://equinox-of-insanity.com/2008/02/give-and-take-music-and-milkshakes/#comment-957 Nima Wed, 27 Feb 2008 07:31:13 +0000 http://equinox-of-insanity.com/2008/02/give-and-take-music-and-milkshakes/#comment-957 <blockquote> I think there’s just a miscommunication here, though. The question Macalope and Gruber are addressing is not “How much should Apple/record labels have received based on what people did with their stuff?” but rather “How much <i>would</i> they have received if people <i>hadn’t</i> done what they did with their stuff?” </blockquote> <p>I posit that "loss" is defined by the former, not the latter. I don't think what <i>would</i> have happened matters; I think what <i>has</i> happened, the gain to the pirate, is the loss.</p> <p>I'll give John and the Macalope credit that, unlike some others, at least they aren't condoning piracy, but I think this logic -- of looking to hypotheticals -- is the same as that of pirates*.</p> <ul> <li>To be clear, by "pirates" I mean people who download music and movies and stuff, not actually eye-patch wearing sea pirates, which are totally freakin' awesome. FYI.</li> </ul> I think there’s just a miscommunication here, though. The question Macalope and Gruber are addressing is not “How much should Apple/record labels have received based on what people did with their stuff?” but rather “How much would they have received if people hadn’t done what they did with their stuff?”

I posit that “loss” is defined by the former, not the latter. I don’t think what would have happened matters; I think what has happened, the gain to the pirate, is the loss.

I’ll give John and the Macalope credit that, unlike some others, at least they aren’t condoning piracy, but I think this logic — of looking to hypotheticals — is the same as that of pirates*.

  • To be clear, by “pirates” I mean people who download music and movies and stuff, not actually eye-patch wearing sea pirates, which are totally freakin’ awesome. FYI.
]]> By: Lanny Heidbrede3r http://equinox-of-insanity.com/2008/02/give-and-take-music-and-milkshakes/#comment-956 Lanny Heidbrede3r Tue, 26 Feb 2008 23:21:11 +0000 http://equinox-of-insanity.com/2008/02/give-and-take-music-and-milkshakes/#comment-956 <p>I actually believe Macalope is correct on this one; I thought the exact same thing you did when I saw the link on Fireball.</p> <p>I think there's just a miscommunication here, though. The question Macalope and Gruber are addressing is not "How much <em>should</em> Apple/record labels have received based on what people did with their stuff?" but rather "How much <em>would</em> they have received if people <em>hadn't</em> done what they did with their stuff?"</p> <p>Neither of those guys are defending piracy/unlocking or saying a "never-gonna-purchase" pirate/unlocker is morally neutral. They're just correcting misimpressions about the actual, real-life loss the companies can say they're experiencing due to the piracy/unlocking.</p> I actually believe Macalope is correct on this one; I thought the exact same thing you did when I saw the link on Fireball.

I think there’s just a miscommunication here, though. The question Macalope and Gruber are addressing is not “How much should Apple/record labels have received based on what people did with their stuff?” but rather “How much would they have received if people hadn’t done what they did with their stuff?”

Neither of those guys are defending piracy/unlocking or saying a “never-gonna-purchase” pirate/unlocker is morally neutral. They’re just correcting misimpressions about the actual, real-life loss the companies can say they’re experiencing due to the piracy/unlocking.

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