here are some situations I can think of where illegally downloading stuff is morally OK, nondetrimental, and probably good for someones’ business, too:

• I purchase “home video office” from bleep. my decision to buy is predicated solely on some random blogger’s comparison of the music to boards of canada. excitedly, I share the unprotected mp3’s with laura. later, laura tells me that home video office is playing a show in new york, which we attend. had I not shared the mp3s, home video office would be less rich by the price of 2 concert tickets, as well as the exposure generated by the entire exchange, which is hard to value.
• “spider-man 2” hits the theatres. having legally watched a legitimate, MPAA-endorsed DVD copy of the original “spider-man”, I download and watch a DivX copy of the first movie before going out to see the second. as such I am able to formulate a far more cogent analysis of the “spider-man” franchise when the topic comes up in conversation. without this resource, “spider-man 2” would be just another summer hollywood hit, but now the whole is greater than the sum of the parts (as it were) and my conversation about it reflects this.
• I download and watch the movie “spirited away”, on a whim, knowing nothing about it. after watching the horribly compressed DivX file, I am moved to near tears (fo’reals, don’t laugh, you philistines) and as such I endeavor to legally acquire the movie, as well as the soundtrack and a book about it. despite this, I do hold onto the downloaded copy, as there is a subtle difference in the subtitle translation in this copy that I find rather poignant*. the whole thing sets me off on a miyazaki kick.
• I purchase and read the book “battle royale” after downloading the film of the same name. to this day, this film remains legally unavailable in america, four years after its initial release.
• unable to track down my old cd copy of the cure’s “mixed up” compilation, I download a copy in advance of the curiosa festival, so I can better sing along to “lullaby” on the off chance that the band endeavors to play it.

I felt like listing these examples cuz everything I read online about copyright debates seems to be oddly decontextualized. most people seem content to talk about the actual stuff being downloaded in the abstract. that’s probably where a lot of the problems in the debate come from. so yeah not like all this is anything new or earthshattering or anything like that… I just thought I’d pitch in my contextual two cents. yaaaar.

-fish

• in the downloaded copy, while making Sen’s hair-wrap, Zeniba mentiones that things made with magic are rarely as tenuous or as high-grade as those things made with labor, particularly labors of love. this line isn’t in either the dubbed or subtitled translations included with the american DVD release, and I like it.

ahhhh, curiosa.

i saw the cure a month or so ago, and lullaby was on the setlist. so was fascination street. and edge of the … (from wish). being that i never expected lullaby, i damn near cried with joy.

have a good time. i’m sure they’ll play it.

where, if it is okay if i ask, did you download BR? i cant find a decently subbed english copy.

FIsh, good examples of why p2p is good. I too download a lot of stuff, but I am an avid film + music collector.

btw: Battle Royale rocks and it can actually be purchased on eBay in region 0.