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Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

torrentfreak.com

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Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#31

Post by thaumasiotes »

georgeplusplus wrote: post #11
NeutralForceUsr wrote: post #2

The same is true for Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, and probably other countries in the region. Most people there find it stupid and a "sign of weakness" to pay for digital content. Not only media, but software as well.

Their government reflects their citizens behaviors. They should be glad the stupid westerners are paying. Content creators need to be paid to have an incentive to make new content, take that away and there is nothing for these leeches to steal.

> Content creators need to be paid to have an incentive to make new content

Traditionally they do it so that women will have sex with them.

It's not like there was a shortage of new content 1000 years ago.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#32

Post by RaoulP »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #28
pokepim wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well congress approved 500 million for negative coverage of China. So yes, US websites are even paid for shaming and criticizing China (often based on false information) and our asian enemies (like Japan in the 80s with all the Japan bashing) https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/08/01/l...

> Well congress approved 500 million for negative coverage of China. Can I get a pointer to this?

I just looked this up myself. It was proposed as part of last year's COMPETES act:

https://prospect.org/politics/congress-proposes-500-million-...

I only found articles on this from when the act was still moving through congress. But the act was passed, so I assume this part did as well.

It feels nefarious to me how acts and budgets in the US can bundle things like this.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#33

Post by duxup »

photochemsyn wrote: post #21

Maybe the entertainment industry should go back to making money on quality live performances and theatrical events (large-screen IMAX etc.) and stop trying to control all the low-res streaming video on the Internet for nickels and dimes?

I don’t think people want to go to the movies that much. I don’t.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#34

Post by alwayslikethis »

borissk wrote: post #9

People who pay for legal streaming of music and video are subsidizing the subversion of free speech and privacy on the Internet. The providers use part of their income to lobby politicians for more invasive monitoring of everyone's activities online (so it's easier to catch "pirates") and also fight against any means of preserving one's privacy online. All politicians who suggest to ban encryption online (to protect…

Second this. In our current era the copyright owners (usually not even the authors themselves) are the ones lobbying for increasing surveillance to encroach on the fundamental rights to speech and information. They are also lobbying for ever-lengthening copyright. By paying, you are sponsoring their actions. We should also reform the political system to make it less susceptible to lobbying, but that's another discussion.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#36

Post by alwayslikethis »

hackernewds wrote: post #15
borissk wrote: post #9

People who pay for legal streaming of music and video are subsidizing the subversion of free speech and privacy on the Internet. The providers use part of their income to lobby politicians for more invasive monitoring of everyone's activities online (so it's easier to catch "pirates") and also fight against any means of preserving one's privacy online. All politicians who suggest to ban encryption online (to protect…

> People who pay for legal streaming of music and video are subsidizing the subversion of free speech and privacy on the Internet. So paying for a service that has cost the provider labor, effort and money is a disservice to society, versus stealing it? The verbal gymnastics are fantastic

The same can be said for slave or other unethically produced goods. Should you buy electronics devices made of conflict minerals (usually cobalt from slave child workers in Congo)? By paying for it, you are sponsoring their further exploitation.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#37

Post by alwayslikethis »

NeutralForceUsr wrote: post #2

The same is true for Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, and probably other countries in the region. Most people there find it stupid and a "sign of weakness" to pay for digital content. Not only media, but software as well.

Rutracker is a great achievement of these people. It's a traditional style torrent forum that is still thriving in today's internet and has proven itself resilient to government efforts to take it down.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#39

Post by RHSeeger »

wil421 wrote: post #29
janalsncm wrote: post #12

“Illegal streaming” assumes that upholding the rights of foreign copyright holding megacorps is anywhere in the top 10,000 priorities for the Iraqi government. US law is not world law. This is like China saying that US websites are engaging in “illegal criticism of China”.

I’ve done my fair share of torrenting and the like. Never once I have been under the illusion that I have some kind of special right to someone else’s unique combinations of bits. If the internet wasn’t around people would still be copying VHSs and DVDs. Just because the internet makes it easier to copy doesn’t mean you get a special pass. I did it for the same reason the Iraqis do it, it’s cheaper, easier, and at ti…

> Never once I have been under the illusion that I have some kind of special right to someone else’s unique combinations of bits.

Copyright law isn't about your special rights to someone else's unique combination of bits. It's about what rights they have the legal ability to deny you to those bits. There are plenty of situations where copyright law in one country differs from that of another country; and neither of them are "right".

- An work that is still under copyright in one country at 50 years, but lost copyright in another when it hit 40.

- A videogame that requires a server to run, but the company running it abandoned it.

- A picture of a public place, like the Eiffel tower at night, which runs afoul of copyright law in one country, but not another.

- Software that is abandonware, legal to copy/use in some countries but not others.

Not following the copyright laws of the US (or, for instance, France when it comes to the Eiffel tower and it's lights) does not automatically mean you think you have "special rights to someone else's bits". It means you don't recognize the authority by which they claim they have special rights over your actions; at least as it pertains to the current situation.

Re: Nearly every person in Iraq is an illegal streaming pirate, sources say

#40

Post by duxup »

janalsncm wrote: post #14
georgeplusplus wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Their government reflects their citizens behaviors. They should be glad the stupid westerners are paying. Content creators need to be paid to have an incentive to make new content, take that away and there is nothing for these leeches to steal.

You can pay all you want, but they can take your show down at any time. https://www.npr.org/2023/03/06/1161382179/hbo-max-disappeari...

I don’t really see the problem with that.

The whole streaming model is a sort of rental situation and I can just cancel and try another service.

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