Slashdot Mirror
Linux "is not piracy" Says Microsoft Lawyer
dipfan writes "Further to this Slashdot piece on the activities of the Business Software Alliance, the BBC reports on a European conference on piracy organised by the BSA. The good news is even Microsoft distinguishes between open source software and piracy; it quotes Microsoft's top in-house lawyer Brad Smith as saying: 'Linux is a way of developing software whereas piracy is copying.' The rest of the article is the usual panic-attack about the size of software piracy in general, and how this is holding back the software industry in Eastern Europe, according to Brad. Although the article notes the irony that despite all the piracy, software sales are forecast to grow from $50 billion in 2000 to about $90 billion by 2005."
So you are saying that if I go into a store and put a copy of The Sims under my jacket and walk out without paying it is the same as burning an illegal copy of a friend's game? I have to disagree
Well, let's run the numbers, shall we?
Development team for 2 years: $4 million dollars.
Cost of goods on a copy of the sims... oh... say $6.
Store Price of The Sims: $49.95
Store Take: ~ 50%
You have just deprived the software company of $18.97 of revenue.
Breakeven to the company: 212,000 copies need to be sold.
So yes, it's the same as burning an illegal copy of the game. The only difference being that those $6 for the box, manuals, CDs, etc don't necessarily get given to the manufacturing company.
HOWEVER, if your copying causes a copy to be sent back to the software company as a return from the distributor, that means that they take a hit of a little over $24.
So it's complicated. Depending on how far you take each argument, it is arguably *worse* for you to copy the software than it is to shoplift it -- because at least with shoplifting, they're insured against the loss.
Simon
Coming soon - pyrogyra
Why do the slashbot editors constantly complain about Microsoft, promote Linux...
But then get all defensive about software piracy?
Look... If you don't like Microsoft but do like Linux then USE LINUX! Sheesh, give up the hypocrisy of promoting Linux but using Windows for all your real work, it's old already. Use one or the other, but if you find Windows of value at least have the decency to pay for the product.