Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site hydra.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!harvard!think!mit-eddie!cybvax0!frog!hydra!die
From: die@hydra.UUCP (Dave Emery)
Newsgroups: net.ham-radio,net.video
Subject: Re: Theft is Theft
Message-ID: <133@hydra.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 22-Sep-85 22:59:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: hydra.133
Posted: Sun Sep 22 22:59:44 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 25-Sep-85 10:47:13 EDT
References: <128@hydra.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: Charles River Data Systems, Framingham MA
Lines: 45
Xref: linus net.ham-radio:2657 net.video:1459

>From the artificial intelligence of hplabs!hpscda!hpscdx!garyg
>Gary Gitzen
>Hewlett-Packard

>I saw your recent posting re

>	Theft is Theft.
>and concluded that you have obviously thrown away your TV set because
>it will receive signals that someone has paid to transmit.

>Your argument is specious.


	Perhaps more accurately poorly phrased. Broadcast TV transmission,
program material, and production are funded by people who want me to
watch it and who do not charge a fee for normal home use.   Many other signals
are transmitted by organizations that are providing a service to subscribers
who are expected to pay for that service.  If I pirate that service for 
free then I am doing nothing to cover the costs of providing it, (what
I meant by `paid to transmit').  By pirating the service I deny the provider
just compensation for his costs in obtaining and transmitting the material,
and also (another subtler point) his right to control who uses it and for
what.  I find it very hard to justify such an act from a moral standpoint,
It seems to me that obtaining a service for free that cost someone many
thousands of dollars to provide is theft pure  and simple.

	It is clear that some signals are provided for all to use,
some distribute material meant for a group of specific subscribers,
and some contain private material meant for one or more authorized
recipiants and no one else. It is not clear, whatever the technical
ease and simplicity, or the traditional American belief in "free
public airwaves" that I have the moral right to use either subscription
material or completely private material just because it was there.
Granted there is a subtle argument about taking reasonable precautions
to ensure privacy (which I strongly beleive means encryption now it
is possible, relatively cheap, and does not significantly degrade signal
quality), but I do not beleive one has a moral right to use information
picked out of the ether that was not transmitted for one's use.

          David I. Emery    Charles River Data Systems   617-626-1102
          983 Concord St., Framingham, MA 01701.
	  uucp: decvax!frog!die