Interview - Pirates of Southeast Asia: At Wallet's End
by Alex Co, posted on 04 April 2011 / 1,482 Views
I have no qualms in saying piracy IS stealing. It is the same as going to a store taking something without paying for it. Why do people do it? Why it is not considered that big of a deal compared to actual shoplifting, robbery and other thievery? I cannot answer for everyone. However, I would like to shed some light regarding this topic where I’m from (Philippines). It may not answer everything, but it will at least give a little insight and clarity on why some people do it.
In a country where the average household income per person is roughly $230 per month, it’s not that surprising to see people pirating games, movies, music, and other things you can download off the internet. People here would rather use their money to buy food, clothes, and other necessities. In short – games are not in their list of “wants,” much less needs.
Before you feel sorry for them, keep in mind that there are still a handful of people who can afford to buy the things they want and that includes original games.
For the people curious, the price of a pirated Xbox 360 game here is about $2.50 a pop. You can even get a discount if you buy it in bulk, or about 5-10 games at once.
It’s also not surprising to see ads like the one posted above that specifically state “We will mod your console for you while you wait,” or “Buy a PS3, get 20 games for free!” In their case of course “free” means having the games installed in a USB drive.
Indeed, this is so prevalent that it’s harder to buy “un-modded” consoles in some malls compared to modified ones; the same goes with games. There are about 2-3 major establishments that sell legitimate consoles and software. The other shops mostly sell pirated games, peripheral, and a few legitimate games thrown in for when the software police make a store visit.
I also talked to two people who are huge gamers. One primarily plays on the PS3, while the other on Xbox 360. While they might play on different consoles, their motives are somewhat similar. Bear in mind that not a lot of people were willing to go on record that they were and still are pirating games.
Disclaimer: I used aliases for the names of the people who agreed to be interviewed due to security and privacy reasons. Also, some of the text was in Tagalog, the Philippines’ native tongue; I translated it but otherwise left every answer as is.
Dondie is single, 30 years old, and lives with his parents in a house they own. His parents both work and they mostly pay for the necessities (food, bills, etc.) This is honestly the norm in the country and it is socially acceptable, especially if you’re single.
Clark is 23 years old and classifies himself as middle-class. He pays for some of the bills at home. Major bills are paid by his parents. His dad works and his mom stays at home.
gamrFeed: Do you pirate games because of economic reasons? Is it due to lack of funds?
Dondie: Yes, it’s due mostly because of my limited budget. Also, here it’s considered normal to pirate games.
Clark: Peer pressure from friends. They rib me about getting original games and (they) deem it as wasteful, stupid, etc. I Download a game, and try it out, if it’s to my liking, I buy it. I did download a game once and finished it without buying the original – this was for Left 4 Dead.
gamrFeed: In your mind, is pirating a “crappy” game much easier to digest than pirating one that you know will be a hit?
Dondie: Yes, I can’t justify buying a crappy game. It feels much easier, morally, to pirate crappy games. Compared to good games and I can’t justify pirating a game from a franchise I love.
Clark: Depends on how the game is published and endorsed. If I feel proper effort has been made to market it, how they push the title out. I feel less inclined to pirate it.
(One of the gaming "packages" offered. For reference, that 360 with 20 games is about $338)
gamrFeed: What are your thoughts on the studio that’s not getting any profit from what you’re doing? Do you feel any regret when the studio whose game you pirated doesn’t get any money from what you’re doing?
Dondie: Sometimes this happens when I’m already done with a game, but yeah I feel a little regret.
Clark: I see this as having both an advantage, and a disadvantage. It’s an advantage for them that when I do play it, I promote the game for them if I like it. That’s free advertising. Disadvantage is they don’t get any money from us, no revenue.
gamrFeed: Does the length of a game matter when it comes to pirating it?
Dondie: Yes of course. I won’t pay $60 for 5 hours! Not worth it. If it’s worth playing again – I mean the game has good replayability, I’ll get it, but not for a very short game.
Clark: It depends on the game and on friends. I do think the game has to offer more if it has a very short single-player. If not, people will pirate it.
gamrFeed: Generally, I find that games with multiplayer components are the ones less likely to be pirated. Is there any truth to this notion?
Dondie: Of course, because we don’t want to get caught. If there was a way to do it without being caught, I’d honestly do it.
Clark: Because we don’t want to get caught and have our consoles banned, short answer is yes.
(A "legit" gaming package costs a lot more usually, as you can see. It's open season for piracy when there's no official support.)
gamrFeed: What will make you stop pirating games? Does it occur to you that a game franchise or game developer you like will sink because of the current trend happening now?
Dondie: Money. If I got rich or if games cost less, I’d consider going legit.
To answer if it occurs to me if a developer might sink because of what I’m doing, yes. Developers might think their game flopped, even though it didn’t because everyone pirated it instead of buying it.
Clark: People will only stop if local law starts to become very strict, if and when the government goes after pirates for REAL. If I see a studio declining, my conscience would tell me that I’m part of the reason why it’s going down. I would buy games to make that studio make money.
gamrFeed: What can Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft do to stop this? Giving official support, a lower price range for the country?
Dondie: I think prices should be adjusted to the consumers’ economy. Gamers shouldn’t feel “penalized” for buying legit games. We have to save up and in turn, play much older games. If we want to buy new ones, we have to pay the full price regardless of how weak our economy is.
Clark: I think having official local support would help. We’ll have security for the product, be it for repairs, licensed parts, etc.
Maybe they (Sony, MS, Nintendo) can manufacture games locally? So the price would be a bit lower where they are manufactured.
(Note: As far as I know, EA is the only one who adjusts their prices in the Philippines. A usual $60 game is priced around $42 here.)
It’s painfully obvious from the two guys I’ve interviewed and to the other people I’ve talked to that rampant piracy here blossomed when the PlayStation 1 and its CD software format became big. CDs and DVDs are very easy to pirate and manufacture. Now with games being released digitally, I don’t expect it to stop anytime soon.
Ultimately, it’s down to personal choice. No matter where you are, torrent sites and peer-to-peer sites will always be there. It’s up to you how you justify pirating a game. One thing is clear though - if you do, don’t complain when we get bombarded with surefire-hit sequels and are stuck with nasty DRMs to counter it.
I’m not justifying what these people do, just giving you an insight as to why they do it. Are they wrong in their thinking and in trying to justify it? That’s open to debate. While piracy is wrong, people don’t necessarily do it for the wrong reasons.
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