we can argue about whether copyright infringement is as bad as stealing, I am prepared to discuss that with you. I'm not really up for defining words to you.[/elitism]
They are not
copyright infringing on the money they owe.
*
Distinguishing copyright and theft is common, consistent with legal usage of the terms, and it's not 'stupid' to agree with court usage of terms that are fundamentally legal ones. Obviously people do informally use 'theft' to mean copyright infringement now as well, so one might argue the informal definition of 'theft' now does include copyright infringement, but I wouldn't go angrily insulting people over preferring a narrower definition.
* in case you are the sort to dismiss wikipedia in general instead of checking the references cited by the article in question, please note: if you want to argue the factual accuracy of the info presented, you will need to dismiss not just wikipedia but also "Clough, Jonathan (2010). Principles of Cybercrime. Cambridge University Press. pp. 221" and "Dowling v. United States (1985), 473 U.S. 207, pp. 217–218."
First, theft is not a 'fundamentally legal term', you big spaz. Come on.
Second, the pirates (are you going to take me to task over the legal useage of this term too?) are stealing the money they owe. If you sneak into a theatre you are stealing the price of a ticket. If you don't pay your employee their wages you are stealing their pay packet. This is acceptable common useage. Theft is a broad enough term that it covers all this stuff, quite independent of legal specifics.
In the case of copyright, it's quite possible to infringe on somebody's copyright without actually withholding money you owe, because none is asked - as is the case in
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowling_v._United_States_%281985%29 - so it gets it own little legal term to deal with the complexities of copyright. In the HIB#3 case, certainly copyright is being infringed on, but we also have a situation where money is directly asked for and none is given, so it is stealing
as well as copyright infringement. Theft is an inexact term, and copyright infringement is too narrow to cover it.
The theft I am talking about, and the article was talking about, is specifically the theft or defraudation of the money that is owed for the HIB#3.
It is shit-eatingly retarded to bring up legal distinctions where common useage applies. Notch is fat, stupid, useless and Swedish.
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