The Study of Piracy

 
Recently the Government Accountability Office spent a year studying how piracy and illegal counterfeiting affects the United States. The GAO has said that data used to quantify piracy is not reliable. In addition they said, "Estimates of economic losses resulting from counterfeiting cannot be substantiated due to the absence of underlying studies. Each method (of measuring) has limitations, and most experts observed that it is difficult, if not impossible, to quantify the economy-wide impacts." The GAO continued by saying, "Some experts we interviewed and literature we reviewed identified potential positive economic effects of counterfeiting and piracy." The GAO admits that piracy is running rampant and that it could be harmful, but cannot accurately estimate a dollar amount.

On another note, the head of the International Actors’ Federation said, “To me, piracy is something adventurous, it makes you think about Johnny Depp. We all want to be a bit like Johnny Depp. But we’re talking about a criminal act. We’re talking about making it impossible to make a living from what you do.” Okay I cannot help myself from laughing at this quote, we all do want to be a bit like Johnny Depp, but I do not see the clear association between the two.

As for a general pulse, it seems like people fall everywhere regarding views on piracy. There are 3 major groups: "the it's morally wrong group," "the I hate large corporations over charging and I am going to teach them a lesson group" and "the I understand both sides group." Most people can agree that piracy is running rampant and that it does not seem like it is going to slow down anytime soon.