A great essay by Tim O'Reilly on piracy. Read it. He clearly knows what he's talking about. [Scripting News]

Here is the summary. Click on the link above to read his explanations. I think he is on target. If you want a comprehensive explanation of the issues you should check out the Free Expression Policy Project and their public policy report, “THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE AND USEFUL ARTS”: WHY COPYRIGHT TODAY THREATENS INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM“.

Lesson 1: Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.

Lesson 2: Piracy is progressive taxation

Lesson 3: Customers want to do the right thing, if they can.

Lesson 4: Shoplifting is a bigger threat than piracy.

Lesson 5: File sharing networks don't threaten book, music, or film publishing. They threaten existing publishers.