To Pirate or not to Pirate? That is the quesiton!

Hassanah El-Yacoubi: Hello everyone! And thank you for tuning in today. Our guests for the day are Jason Shultz and Scott Mathews disputing such a controversial issue on file-sharing ,illegal downloading, and the “steeling” of unauthorized files such as music downloads and/or videos. People who download music illegally without paying for it or acquiring legitimate authorization do not know that they are being watched and could potentially be sued for piracy. Let talk to our guests about this and see what they have to say. Scott, how did file-sharing stir up such a controversy over something we seem to think so little”?

Scott Matthews: Hassanah, thank you for having me. Let’s get right to it. It is simply against the law to pirate. And those who will disobey shall be punished whether they are college students or adults. What these people are failing to see and acknowledge is the fact that these recording companies and producers are working extremely hard at what they do. In the end the amount of income they should be obtaining is virtually cut in half do to illegal downloading and file sharing. Do you think that is fair?


Hassanah El-yacoubi: No not at all, but I myself never knew the severity of this issue. Jason how can you argue this?

Jason Shultz: Hassanah, I’m sorry but no matter what Scott says about “punishing those who disobey the law” pirating is something that will continue to reign until the end of time. It is literally impossible to track down the thousands of people who file share and download illegally. Although I do agree that it is not fair to record companies because some computer wiz has found a way to sell them short of their efforts. That is why I propose a comprehensive license that allows people to attain music and movies from many different sources. As for students they are poor enough. They do not need superfluous charges held against them and unnecessary law suits to add the pile of bills that they are already paying for. It just isn’t right.

Scott Matthews: You see Jason that’s what you do not understand. Even if they are students, that doesn’t make them indifferent to abiding by the law. These students or who ever are doing the crime and therefore they must do time. File sharing and illegal downloading can result in up to $250,000 in fees and 5 years in jail. This is how serious it is. I suggest these students look at the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) website to fully broaden their understanding of what constitutes piracy and finding other ways around it.

Hassanah El-Yacoubi: Well, now we have a better understanding of file-sharing and I’m sure we will think twice next time we download music illegally. That’s all the time we have today folks. I’d like to thank our esteemed guests for being with us today Jason Shultz and Scott Matthews. See Ya!