Things are very clear when we deal with physical products. Everybody knows that if you go to a store and pick up a book without paying for it, you are committing a crime. Sure. You can always get a free book as a part of promotion. But you get the point. There is no gray area here. Things are less clear when dealing with e-books. If you buy an e-book, you are obviously not entitled to a free physical copy of the same title. But is it OK to download a pirated version of a book that you have already bought in paper format?
The answer is yes and no. Technically, you have already paid for the same content and supported the author in the process. At the same time, you are technically breaking the law. NY Times had a very interesting column on this very topic. The Ethicist concluded that while it’s illegal to download a pirated version of your book, it may not be unethical:
it is not unethical. Author and publisher are entitled to be paid for their work, and by purchasing the hardcover, you did so. Your subsequent downloading is akin to buying a CD, then copying it to your iPod.
Publishers do not appreciate that take. They don’t mind you paying for the same content over and over again. But that seems to be the fundamental issue here. Many of us have come to think of books as physical products. But you are essentially paying for the information. Sure, the design work and all the extras you get with a book cost publishers as well. But there is no reason a person who buys a paper copy of a book should pay the full price of its e-book version as well.
There is nothing right about piracy. Unless you live in a country that censors certain books that can wake people up, I can’t see a good reason for downloading pirated copies. Authors spend a lot of time writing their books (not all of them but most). If you don’t buy their books and just download them for free, you are helping them go out of business. At the same time, publishers need to be less greedy when dealing with different formats of the same work. So there is no reason for them not to offer paper+e-book bundles to help consumers save money.
Piracy is not pretty and not productive. Especially in the e-book business. Some of us many feel entitled to free e-copies of the books we have already purchased. But when you download pirated copies, you help spread books to those who have not paid for them. The issue of piracy is going to stay relevant in the e-book industry for the foreseeable future. Let’s hope the publishing industry does not make the same mistakes as the music industry.
What’s your take? Should you be able to download the e-version of a paper book that you have just bought for free?
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3 comments
#1KristinaApril 9, 2010, 9:11 am
Absolutely! I’ve always felt that if you buy the Hardcover copy of a book it would be a good idea to include a code to either get the e-book highly discounted or free. If it’s a paperback version of the book, then maybe a slightly lighter discount on the e-book. I personally will always buy the physical version of my favorite authors and/or series. That said I don’t want to haul a hardcover around with me to work, to the docs office or wherever I will want to whip out my book to read. I realy think that publishers have been alienating a vast number of readers with their snotty attitude and general dismissal of digital content buyers. They better be careful or more readers will be disenfranchised and not feel so bad about pirating their books soon.
To argue another side of this… Just because I bought the hardcover version of my fav author does not mean I expect to get the paperback for free once it comes out a year later. Really sometimes books come out in many different formats. Look at Twighlight (if we must). Started out as Trade paperback when very first published. Then it became so popular that they started releasing it in Hardcover, the movie came out and it was in mass market paperback with the original cover, then the movie cover…. and on and on and on and on. Just because I have the very first printing of the trade paperback does that mean I have the right to get the hardcover and mas market paperback for free? Hell no. I need to pay for each copy I buy. Same thing with digital. It’s just another version of the book, if you want both you pay for both. You want one, you just pay for one. Like everything in life. But like I said before a good promotion to draw in people (IMHO) would be to offer the digital version free/discounted when the hardcover is released or another promotion when the paperback is released a year or so later. I would definitly think twice about waiting the year for paperback if I knew I could get the e-book and hardcover together for one price.
#2ArjunaNovember 14, 2010, 12:53 am
The argument of "there are multiple copies of the same book and you have to pay for those," doesn't make sense. When you buy the paperback version of the hardcover book you already own, you are also paying for paper, ink, and shipping. It doesn't cost the publishers very much to make an e-book and it is free for them to distribute it, but it costs us consumers money in the form of computers/e-readers/internet access. I say download your e-books if you own them. it doesn't make sense to pay something for nothing. period.
#3manugwJanuary 27, 2011, 3:03 pm
I think to download a pirate copy looks unethical and is illegal. But what happens when you know that somebody has put on the web some a pricey stuff you can get for free instead from a fileshare and do not take it ? Who is the crook ? The pirate, the buyer, both ? Is copyright legislation infrigement up to the advance of new technologies ?
Amazon does not fix the Kindle e-reader breakdowns is that illegal ? No, is that unethical? of course it is.
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