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PC Software Piracy Decreases Worldwide, But Remains Rampant (torrentfreak.com)
An anonymous reader writes: A new report published by The Software Alliance shows that usage of pirated PC software is decreasing worldwide. While this is a positive trend for the industry, piracy remains rampant in many countries. This includes Libya, where a massive 90 percent of all software is used without permission.
I bought legal copies of Windows 9 from ebay for all my machines, so I didn't have to pirate software. Just had to wait until they were shipped in from Hong Kong.
... are the tech industry, the videogame industry especially with the rise of the internet is basically making broken fraudulent/products and upping the corporate propaganda campaign to sell microtransactions and loot boxes and that requires basically stealing the software. Diablo 3, starcraft 2 and now even starcraft 1 with the latest patch now have drm in them - aka - the software you paid for now requires permission from another computer and violates your privacy at the same time.
No thanks the mass of tech illiterate idiots that came online high speed internet.
If your software has switched to a DRM, always-online, subscription based model, the odds are I'll ignore it completely before I'll pirate it. And I'll pirate it before I buy it if I can't figure out:
A - What it is that your product does exactly
B - What specific licensing malarkey I need to do what I want
C - What the 67 different versions actually restrict me from doing
D - If the product even works as claimed, has decent support, gets updates, etc.
Actually I think it is because most software is hooked to the cloud. And we pay for service contract to use it monthly vs. having the software on your PC.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
I don't think paying $50 to $70 for a game released on first day is that outrageous, depending on the game. Lots of games now can occupy your time for weeks, if not months. The are not the simple jump and shoot games from the 80/90's. A great deal of them are open ended games with constant updates and expansions being release.
What I do think is outrageous is them continuing to charge $60 and $70 for a game that has been out for 2 or 3 years. GTAV on the PC is my example. I also have a beef with them charging you 50 bucks for a game then charging you 10 a month to continue to play it.
I read at +2. If your post doesn't reach that level I will not see or respond to it.
If you look at pages 17 through 19 (inclusive, of the actual report), you'll find some very fine prose that the BSA use to describe the methodology they follow for determining the amount of unlicensed software.
... ... Respondents are asked how many software packages, and what type, were installed on their PC in the previous year; what percentage were new or upgrades; whether they came with the computers or not; and whether they were installed on a new computer or one acquired prior to 2017..."
It's utter garbage.
It's about as accurate as a weather forecast could be. It contains English-language "formulae" such as:-
Unlicensed Rate = Unlicensed Software Units / Total Software Units Installed
and Total Software Units Installed = #PCs Getting Software x Software Units per PC
Just look at that second formula for a moment. This is an approximation at best. But the absolute worst part of the report is the part in which the BSA explain how they get these numbers. This is, in fact, done for them by IDC. And here is the methodology:-
A key component of the BSA Global Software Survey is a global survey of more than 22,500 home and enterprise PC users, conducted by IDC in November 2017. The survey was conducted online or by phone in 32 markets that make up a globally representative sample of geographies, levels of IT sophistication and geographic and cultural diversity....
So let's just translate that.
1. This survey was based on evidence from a telephone survey.
2. People were called and asked to accurately remember what software had been installed on a computer in the preceding 12 months.
3. The result of a survey of 22,500 people was then extrapolated up to represent the entire world's software piracy problem.
We need to remember that this sort of document gets handed around the halls of government and shown to policy makers; the poor data samples, invalid questions, wild speculations, and sloppy calculations that form the heart of this paper then get used as the basis for legislation. Don't get me wrong - software piracy is wrong. With so much fabulous free and open source software available, there really is no excuse for it any more.
But it's important to remember that this sort of paper is going to be used to argue for ever-more Draconian laws which will restrict the freedoms of ordinary computer users. It's really important that documents like this get properly challenged and that legislators are left clearly understanding that this report belongs in the fiction section of the bookshop...
$50/mo. is not modest. It's equivalent to re-buying the entire suite every 3 years. I never upgraded that often prior to that forced change.
Here is the plan about Libya
You re-release perfectly good games with new DRM and always on internet requirements.
You release a stripped down version of the game and sell the rest as DLC
You expect every title to be paid for again on every platform.
You abandon your hardware
You cut off the servers
You require extra sales funnel installations
You install spyware
You completely change games core mechanics with no notice.
You make up silly numbers and complain about piracy.
You take gamers to court
You charge monthly fees on top of full retail price.
You make micro-transactions mandatory.
You re-release and ruin classics.
Sorry, not sorry.
You are being ripped off every second of every day, so that advertisers can help rip you off even more tomorrow.
If you get a game with a more decent campaign (I've sunk 50 hours into Nier so far), or a multiplayer option, or replay value, it becomes the cheapest form of entertainment you can buy.
This is truth. I've bought GTA V across 3 platforms, PS3, XBone, and now on the PC when it went on sale for $29 on Steam. I know some people would wonder about buying the same game several times, but I've literally played the hell out of this game. I really can't put a number on how many hours I've played it. But if I was to put a dollar amount on it, it would be under a $1 an hour.
I read at +2. If your post doesn't reach that level I will not see or respond to it.
Well there are some people that are just to cheap no matter how much money they have. If they can get something for nothing, they will. Some people its a challenge. Beat the system and get it for free. I know someone like that. They will pirate a game before they buy it. They don't even play it. It's the thrill of getting something for free that turns them on.
To me the risks out way any potential pay off you get from pirating a game. Let's face it, some of the people that crack these games don't have the best intentions at heart. Then there is just the trouble of not getting updates, having to fight the game to install it, and all kinds of other shit. I want to play a game, not fight it.
I read at +2. If your post doesn't reach that level I will not see or respond to it.