Is Audio Book Pirating A Problem?
Because audio books have vast similarities to other types of electronic files, they are indeed subject to the problems of internet piracy. This illegal activity is defined as the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted software and files via an electronic source. With so many websites facilitating the distribution of links to pirated software, it is little wonder that consumers are bypassing the purchasing stage, and heading straight towards the consumption process.
The problem doesn't stop there though. With the current economic woes, resulting in a resounding fall in the income earned by the average American household, people are refusing to fork out money for mass produced and easily copyable products such as audio books, and are instead going out of their way to find the free version equivalent.
But will this be the case for much longer? Let's take a look at the current state of the online file distribution industry, and see if any changed are in the pipeline.
What Lies Ahead.
If you follow the trends in internet piracy closely, you will see that whilst there has been a surge in the number of illegal downloads, there has also been a surge in regulatory action and civil suits filed in courts by publishing and recording companies. At this very point in time, a few of the worlds largest websites are facing major punishment for acting as a distributive method for online piracy.
These include:
http://www.thepiratebay.org
http://www.kazaa.com
http://www.rapidshare.com
Even as these websites attempt to stem the growth in illegal downloads themselves, they are being targeted by the authorities for the part they play in allowing users to access information and links directly to pirated files.
Indeed then, it seems that audio books are subjected to the same issues as mainstream media files. Perhaps the reason why this isn't so obvious at first is because of the much smaller scale on which audio books are manufactured.
By keeping production limited to very few select titles, and by committing to internet security standards such as DRM, audio book publishers seem to have a better grasp on their content than their larger industry partners do. And whilst steps are being taken to ensure that the piracy problem doesn't continue to get any bigger, it may always be the case that this issue will plague the online distribution model for many years to come.
