Piracy has become a name to be proud of

The term piracy, to describe the practice of distributing copyrighted material without the owners’ consent, is viewed more and more as a term to be proud of. The Pirate Bay forms a good example.

It is now so cool to be a ‘pirate’, that rights holders take offence.

The head of the International Actors Federation showcased her dissatisfaction with the name. "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.”

James Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and head of the European department of his News Corp., also has had it with the free-for-all, adventurous connotation. In a speech in Abu Dhabi, he recently said: "It's a basic condition for investment and economic growth and there should be the same level of property rights whether it's a house or a movie. The idea that there's a new consumer class and you have to be consumer-friendly when they're stealing stuff. No. There should be the same level of sanctity as there is around property. Content is no different. They're not crazy kids. No. Punish them."

It is striking that earlier, the file sharing community was offended by the name. It would be associated with violence and theft. Now, it seems the tables have turned.

8 April 2010