uriel238, rok temu

One of the rights we are continually trying to claw back from the IP Maximalist lobby (and their minions in office) is the right to enjoy the media you own in a format available to you.

However, the studios and labels like taking another bite of the apple by releasing new versions, or versions in new formats, sometimes twice as they release better versions that correct for bad transfers (e.g. the lightsaber problem with the early blu-ray release.)

Hollywood has established though repeated bad-faith behavior, it’s not interested in getting your money legitimately or while retaining a positive customer experience, but extracting your money any way they can.

The DMCA forbids breaking DRM even for legal or non-copyright violating reasons (which is how we lost the right to repair or even jailbreak phones). And they could use this to prevent you from converting formats of your media to one you can actually use, but they’d have to make a stretchy case in court.

Sony also overcharges for scratched or failed media, so they’ve been caught treating their stuff as licenses or media when it legally suits them.

PS: Illegal ≠ Wrong. LGBT+ people are not grooming children, but religious ministries are.

adonkeystomple, rok temu

Yeah it’s crazy how much the world has changed even in my short lifetime, especially with the mass adoption of digital media. It’s going to be so difficult for people to retain their rights to what they purchase.

reverendsteveii, rok temu

Is it wrong to pirate movies…

…lemme stop you right there

_TK, rok temu

Legally, yes it is wrong.

Morally? That depends on the person. I think asking a piracy focused community means you’re going to get a heavily skewed set of answers that all veer towards various forms of “Not wrong” or “It’s good actually. Don’t even support the platforms that make the content legally available because DRM sucks” etc.

Generally speaking though, most older visual media releases no longer make money for anyone who worked on them directly. Use that information however you see fit. I know it changes how I think about piracy in general.

nekahat, rok temu

It’s wrong to pay for movies so technically yes.

adonkeystomple, rok temu

Would you care to elaborate? I don’t really see how it would be wrong?

nekahat, rok temu

That was a joke.

rockhandle, rok temu

Personally, I feel the same way you do about DRM. If you’ve paid to own it, then it should be owned outright. With this in mind, I would say pirating them wouldn’t lose you any moral ground.

Commiejones, rok temu

Is it wrong to pirate movies

NO

platysalty, rok temu

Super illegal. Straight to super jail.

danielquinn, rok temu

There’s a couple angles you can take on this. My favourite is from the dotCommunist Manifesto:

Society confronts the simple fact that when everyone can possess every intellectual work of beauty and utility—reaping all the human value of every increase of knowledge—at the same cost that any one person can possess them, it is no longer moral to exclude.

Essentially, this argues that the unethical position is the one that creates the false scarcity.

Another less extreme position would be that many countries allow for exemptions for format shifting: if you buy a CD with some music, you’re legally permitted to rip it so long as you don’t distribute copies. One could argue that someone in your position is operating within the spirit of these laws… provided that you haven’t torrented the videos since that necessarily includes some partial distribution.

Finally, the least generous interpretation would point out that you didn’t buy the videos in the first place, but rather a licence to let Vudu stream them to you. Given that you don’t own anything, you’re not morally entitled to own it in a different format. This is why many people have rejected the streaming model.

As someone in camp #1, I think you’re a-ok ethically, but I thought you might want a broader perspective.

tlit341569, rok temu

nothing is wrong with piracy

collegefurtrader, rok temu

Ethically spotless, yet still a crime.

Blizzard, rok temu

Not necessarily - depends on the way of obtaining the file. Downloading a copyrighted video is not illegal (it’s fair use), sharing it with others is illegal. If they downloaded it directly without sharing, that’s perfectly legal.

Vaggumon, rok temu

Asking if pirating something is wrong in a pro pirating group…

adonkeystomple, rok temu

Fair lol

giant_smeeg, rok temu

Its wrong they bought it in the first place…

PM_ME_VINTAGE_30S, rok temu

Is it wrong to pirate {anything}

No.

yote_zip, rok temu

It’s completely down to your opinion. Legally I would guess that you’re not allowed to do it, but nowadays we live in a hellscape where we own nothing so I wouldn’t base your moral compass off of the rules that corporations set. Personally if I’ve already bought it somewhere it is mine. They’re lucky I even purchased one copy, they’re not getting anything else from me.