>>713733302 (OP)Emulation is piracy, and due to software piracy, the industry has seen some 12 billion dollars and over 100,000 jobs lost. The attraction of piracy is due to its anonymity and the ease with which illegal copies of software can be made and distributed. However, every person who makes illegal copies is contributing to the monetary losses caused by piracy.
Information really does not "want to be free." People who write the software have rights to profit from it, just as people who write books have the sole right to sell them. Copying software is depriving the rightful owners of software of hard-earned wages.
Software piracy cannot be protected by the first amendment, because the first amendment does not cover illegal activities. Just as yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater is not protected by the first amendment, neither is the distribution of illegal software.
The claim that pirates have a right to make illegal copies of software because the software is buggy, or too expensive, or not frequently used by the pirate, is also flawed. Someone might think a Rolls-Royce is too expensive and not worth the money, but this doesn't give him the right to steal it. Or, the fact that you almost never watch television doesn't give you the right to steal a TV.
Pirating software costs everyone. Since not as many copies of software are sold, the software manufacturers have to raise prices. This means that the legitimate users are incurring higher costs due to piracy.
In short, piracy is not as "victimless" a crime as it may seem. Software developers, distributors, and, ultimately, end users, are all hurt by piracy.
