French Pass '3 Strikes' Piracy Disconnection Bill

@ Gordon
I think it's the subject matter, as it has never really been cleared up in a court of law and is one of those situations where the major record labels/lobby groups are obviously wrong in how they're going about protecting their work (well the artists work :P ). But the group diametrically opposed (the pirates) obviously are going about it the wrong way too, as they are just giving the lobby groups a reason to carry on litigation.

The best solution to making the industries realize they have a dying business model would be to stop purchasing things that you don't think are fairly priced or have been restricted in how you use them. And when their margins begin to fall simply because they can't force people by law to buy their products they might adapt. The problem is people want to consume and the stop buying it method would take years to work, and people get bored and find other ways to get a hold of content they want (me included :P ).

@ lifethroughalens

Thanks for the kind words. I felt embarrassed mentioning my situation here, but thought it relevant to the topic of business and short-sighted fat cats. (no pun intended with your user name!)

@Gordon
Thank you for providing the open forum to discuss technology in its broadest terms.

OK, mutual back patting over, back to the cream cake fight!

One should remember that most entertainment is eventually broadcast freely, and can be recorded at that time. What 'the industry' needs to learn to protect is their 'value-added' extras, and premium quality. Free broadcasts/recordings may be of lesser quality... but no one stops anyone from recording radio/television/cable (although some try, in some venues). We've had the ability to freely take audio/video from broadcasts for decades... and to freely make copies of content for our personal use, in any way/gadget we wanted... before DRM. What needs to be regulated is mass distribution... not individual copying. If I buy an offering, I'll copy it to any/all gadgets that I want to 'consume' it on... I may even share it with friends... but I generally don't provide the whole neighborhood (or the world) with copies. Sharing helps generate sales, mass distribution replaces sales. The industry should recognize the relative value and not try to deal in absolutes... (as in absolutely no sharing even a single time). The industry also needs to recognize and pass on to consumers, the cost savings in electronic distribution and promotion... it's their foolish insistence on maintaining old pricing structures, protecting their niche and profit margins, that have people rebelling. I wish the artists would just create their own distribution organization... rebel against 'the industry' ...and receive a greater percentage of the profit which is their due. Many artists receive more profit from touring, many new artists could get their performances out there on the 'net electronically when they can't tour. The 'middle men' are fighting tooth and claw for old profits, and control.

I think an appropriate piracy penalty is some multiple of the purchase price... without criminalization. The access account is charged the piracy fee... and that guarantees the account owners' attention to prevent abuse... whether it's securing their connection from illegal drive-by access, or policing their own family members.