Digital Piracy Is Evil: Difference between revisions

[[Keep Circulating the Tapes]] and [[Abandon Ware]] are related concepts. However, in regards to this trope, they are usually ignored. This is because companies that are the victims of such types of piracy often give subtle glances that they don't particularly care, or [[Digital Piracy Is Okay|may even actively encourage it]]. [[Information Wants to Be Free]], on the other hand, will usually pose a clear danger and demand swift action. [[Can't Stop the Signal|Not that it will help much]]. Not to mention, people typically don't complain about [[Keep Circulating the Tapes]] and [[Abandon Ware]] anyways, since it's not exactly hurting any business if the market's nonexistent in the first place.

 

 

For the polar opposite, see [[Digital Piracy Is Okay]].

<!-- %% -->

 

 

== Commercials ==

* In the ''Dante's Inferno'' puppet movie, there is a scene in which a Judge in Hell is sentencing sinners to their respective places in Hell. The first soul that comes up says he is there for downloading [[Metallica (Music)|Metallica]]. The Judge sentences him to circle 7, level 1 of Hell for that.

* One of the sketches in ''[[Amazon Women On the Moon]]'' is "Video Pirates": a stereotypical pirate ship captures a prize and in the captain's cabin discovers a treasure... of videotapes. They throw one in the VCR and see the standard FBI warning, causing the captain to go "Oooo, I'm ''so'' scared!" and the crew to break into hysterical laughter.

* A bit of a twist on the ''[[Dr. Horribles Sing Along Blog]]'' DVD: the FBI warning changes to reveal a warning from the Evil League of Evil itself, only allowing ''evil'' use of the DVD.

* Given a wink in ''[[Transformers Film Series|Transformers]]''. "I may have downloaded a couple thousand songs off the internet, but who hasn't?"

* An ad campaign in the UK called "Knock-Off Nigel" is being used in an attempt to actually create and promote a stigma to buying pirate DVDs and downloading movies. The titular Nigel is accosted in one advert by a singing old man who talks about his "shady" dealings, prompting the entire pub he is in to start singing along. The second advert involves the same thing, except he's now in an office and his workmates are doing it instead. The ad campaign tries to put across the idea that people who download or pirate films steal from their grandmother's purse and give their girlfriends gifts they find lying on the street. These ads wind up making Nigel [[Unintentionally Sympathetic]], since it simply appears that he's getting assaulted by these irritating, high-and-mighty gits.

* ''[[The Daily Show (TV)|The Daily Show]]'' has Jon Stewart advertise his show's full availability on Comedy Central's own website moments after referencing the Viacom lawsuit against [[YouTube]], while ''[[The Colbert Report]]'' ends some episodes with an advertisement to "watch every clip ever!" online.

* ''[[The Young Ones]]'' used this trope in regards to TV license evasion, by having Vyvyan {{spoiler|eat the evidence.}}

* Presented with a patient who has shoved an mp3 player up his ass, [[House (TV)|House]] plays this for humor when he passes the dirty work on to Dr. Cuddy -- along with the message that the RIAA wants her to check for illegal downloads.

* ''[[Leverage]]:'' Hardison mentions having to route through three different satellites to get a decent signal and download the latest ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' torrent -- Parker turns on a lighter and says: "Hey... Illegal downloading is wrong!" Then she sets fire to a wastebasket inside a small van. This is especially ironic because Parker is nothing if not a thief.

* Was inverted in an episode of ''[[Law and Order (TV)|Law and Order]]'' when some criminals captured someone who sold illegal DVDs. They made the man stand on top of a stack of the pirated DVDs with a noose around his neck, and alternated pulling them out from under his feet until he strangled.

* An episode of ''[[Seinfeld (TV)|Seinfeld]]'' had Kramer convince Jerry to get an illegal cable hookup. Jerry subsequently has a dream where he's busted, and is shot hundreds of times while trying to make a run for it, dying in Kramer's arms.

{{quote| "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZMr6-yM-Ls What have you done to my little cable boy?!]"}}

 

== Web Comics ==

** The information in that strip regarding iTunes having DRM protection on its songs is outdated, as acknowledged by a [http://xkcd.com/546/ later strip].

*** Only because DRM-free music is the norm. The original strip still applies to music that does have DRM, and perhaps more importantly, to most computer games and other software on the market today.

* ''[[Mr. Coat and Friends]]'' spoofed this at [http://thatfellowinthecoat.com/vaultingtinytoons.php the end of this video].

* Another parody: the first thing you see upon starting up the ''[[Marble Hornets]]'' DVD is: "Please don't copy this DVD. Or else [[Slender Man|Slenderman]] will get you."<ref>The message was added by the DVD editor without the permission of the creators, and they were actually rather pissed, not least because in ''MH'', [[I Am Not Shazam|he's called "the Operator," not Slender Man]].</ref>

* [[YouTube]]'s video about Copyright Infringement, starring none other than [[Happy Tree Friends|Russell]]!: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InzDjH1-9Ns&feature=relmfu\]

 

** And, two decades later: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUCyvw4w_yk&feature=related Don't Copy That 2!]

* [[Older Than They Think]]: See [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Taping_Is_Killing_Music Home Taping Is Killing Music].

** ''[[Dead Kennedys (Music)|We]] [[Take That|left this side blank so you can help.]]''

** Needless to say, that slogan has been parodied enough to be approaching [[Dead Horse Trope]] status.

[[Category:Plots]]

[[Category:Digital Piracy Is Evil]]