I don't know about you guys, but I sleep much more soundly at night knowing hardened criminals like the 12 year old girls downloading Hannah Montana songs is safely behind bars.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

For downloading, I'd agree, but I think that if you're uploading the music too, there should be significant fines.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

yeah if a million people download a song you upload it could be millions of dollars

by Anonymous 12 years ago

That's not the point, it's not about how many people download it but about the fact you're infringing copyright and facilitating piracy

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Actually, I'm thinking of all the albums and movies I've ever downloaded right now, and if I had to pay for all of them - even the ones that are on computers I no longer own - it'd add up to quite a bit.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Lol, but if a burglar steals a television from a family, he can't be expected to just buy them a new one for everything to be okay.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

It's only illegal if you make money of out it, not if it's for personal use.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

So you download a bunch of songs, get caught, and would only have to pay like $10...that would not stop anyone from doing it again.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

That's why I said, "if anything at all." Plus, what if someone downloads an album of a new artist because they don't know if it's any good or not?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Thats not the reason. I've bought CDs not knowing if it was going to be good past this one song. People illegally download because they dont want to spend money. and considering how expensive music is, i dont blame them.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

What if I've bought a CD and lose it some how or it gets damaged? What if I download (and pay) for some songs but they're erased from my computer? Do I have the right to download the songs I once owned? http://xkcd.com/488/

by Anonymous 12 years ago

What if you bought a shirt and lost it? are you now allowed to steal it from the store you bought it at? This is all about people not wanting to spend money, and thats it. Dont try to justify it with arguments that are bullshit.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Songs aren't shirts or any other physical objects; you can't touch a song.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

So? It's still a real thing, unless you think the wind doesn't matter either. You can buy the same song 600 times, but if you lose it or it gets erased then you'll have to buy it 601 times because you don't own the rights to that song, just like you don't own the rights to a fashion designer's garments. If you can't see that a song is a real tangible item (selling wise), you need to think again. Look at this article http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/plugged-in/imprisoned-megaupload-founder-loses-call-duty-crown-205144239.html In the article it states he made 175 million from allowing people to illegally download stuff. That's 175 million that should have been going to the proper people who owned the rights to their stuff.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Well yeah, people like him should be prosecuted, but we're talking about people who might simply not have the money to buy the music they love.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

You're right that was an extreme case, but in the end when you download things illegally you are helping people like him get rich. If you can't afford something don't get it. If you are that poor you can't afford a 15 dollar album you have more things to worry about anyhow.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

It also has to do with the fact that that person now knows s/he is being whatched. And with a repeat offense, that person should then be fined a larger, more considerable amount (a price similar to something like a parking fine)

by Anonymous 12 years ago

This is essentially what you're saying: Say that I rob a bank for a million dollars. Scenario 1: A cop catches me. "Hey! Sir! Come back here! Since you stole a million dollars, you'll have to pay back a million dollars!" My profit: $0. Nothing lost. Scenario 2: I get away with the robbery. My profit: $1 million. Huge gain. So, it has absolutely no risk, right? What's preventing me from attempting a robbery again? Nothing! But I do agree that charging $60,000+ for each illegal song is outrageous. (http://music.yahoo.com/blogs/amplifier/minnesota-mom-hit-with-15-million-fine-for-downloading-24-songs.html)

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I understand that, but this was the best way I could put it without having some long, drawn out, overly specific post.

by Anonymous 12 years ago