>>937312828
Yes and no. Getting it for free is harder to measure the direct harm, but it does popularize the consumption of CSAM, some people who consume it for free may go on to pay for it later or abuse children directly themselves. It's also to make for a more consistent application of the law. If it's legal as long as you didn't pay, it would be harder to prosecute actual criminals because they could claim they never paid for it, burden of proof would be on gov to prove they did pay for it. Easier to just make the possession itself a crime.
Also captcha telling me something.