What is Internet Piracy?
Internet piracy is the unlawful reproduction and/or distribution of any copyrighted digital file that can change hands over the Internet. This can be done with music files, videos, movies, e-books, software, and other digital materials.
Internet piracy is surging forward at an astonishing rate especially since the start of the 21st century, where technological advancement has caused the world to be dominated by technological products. Although this is a significant step forward for mankind, there are several implications that stem from the advancement of technology. Like all things, there are two sides to it. The problem resulting from the advancement in technology is undoubtedly internet piracy. Internet piracy has soared over the years and it has become a very real threat to businesses around the world. Especially with the emergence and advancement of peer-to-peer (known as P2P) file sharing over the years, internet users today can share files effortlessly over the internet. This of course, adds to the convenience of internet users and it has caused a significant expansion in online information sharing, which in its pure-form is commendable and a very positive development. However, the ease in which information can be shared is being taken advantage of by copyright infringers, who mainly use these file-sharing systems to carry out their illegal publication or downloading of materials which belong to an exclusive copyright holder of the material, thus shaping what is now known as ‘internet piracy’.
Did you know?
Those who engage in Internet piracy often conduct their entire operation on the Internet, including advertising and sales. Internet piracy has become a worldwide crime problem, because of the relative ease with which it can be committed, even over long distances. This is how convenient the internet is, and if used wrongly, it can easily produce such undesirable effects.