Commerce Secretary Gary Locke yesterday reaffirmed Joe Biden's words referring to copyright infringement as flat, unadulterated theft.
Let's think about that. "Theft", huh? When was the last time you heard of someone being sued for a million dollars for shoplifting a handful of CDs? Legally, copyright infringement is already considered far worse than theft -- and Locke and Biden want to impose even stricter penalties!
Now think about it in terms of America's economic competitiveness. Isn't it worrisome that we're doubling down on a business model that, fundamentally, just doesn't work?
Locke cites the example of a songwriter who, rather than saving for retirement, expected his royalties to act as a "golden parachute" to see him through his old age. Surprise: it didn't work out that way, because people can get his songs without paying him royalties. And now Locke wants us to feel sorry for this songwriter (and others in his position), instead of reconsidering the flawed thinking that led them to believe they'd be able to coast through retirement by charging people for copies of something that's already in the hands of millions of people who can make their own copies.
There is no quick fix to the problem of piracy. The fact is that if you release information to members of the public, people who have it can and will share it with each other. Period. You can't stop someone from making copies in the privacy of his own home, or distributing them, unless you're prepared to strip away nearly all of our speech and privacy rights.
What you can do, however, is encourage a business model that works. It's the same tried and true model that's been used in nearly other industry for centuries: performing labor in exchange for money. If you're a songwriter, find someone (or a group of people) who want a new song written, and convince them to pay you. You write the song, they pay you, and then if you want to get paid again, you repeat the process.
It works for doctors, mechanics, accountants, and construction workers, and it can work for artists just as well -- if they're willing to work for a living instead of hoping to strike it rich with a "golden parachute" that will magically turn a fixed amount of work into a lifetime of income.
Edit: I don't mean to attack songwriters -- they're the victims too. The man Locke cited was more or less conned out of his retirement by promises made by the industry. I do think he was a bit naive to expect royalties to support him through retirement, but perhaps he could've planned better if someone hadn't told him they would.