Distribution by others at that point by definition represents no loss to the rights holder
Oh yes it does. What if the rightsholder can't afford to legally distribute it, but hopes to be able to at a later stage eg due to lowering of technical costs? Copyright infringement substantially reduces the net present value of an IP asset. Because the marginal cost of torrenting etc. is virtually zero, it's easy for copyright infringers to permanently crowd out rights holders.
The bait-and-switch in a lot of pro-piracy arguments, which many proponents are not really conscious of, is that the rights holders are not monolithic. You're telling today's film production companies and professionals that they don't deserve to get paid because of what other firms did in the past.
A vast amount of film production is carried out by small startup-like businesses that have about as much in common with the big studios as a small-time app developer has with Apple Computer. Should I be able to download apps for free because iPhones are expensive?
Fair enough. But I would also wager that a vast, vast amount of piracy is of big studio content, and not the small startup-like businesses you are arguing for.
Oh yes it does. What if the rightsholder can't afford to legally distribute it, but hopes to be able to at a later stage eg due to lowering of technical costs? Copyright infringement substantially reduces the net present value of an IP asset. Because the marginal cost of torrenting etc. is virtually zero, it's easy for copyright infringers to permanently crowd out rights holders.
The bait-and-switch in a lot of pro-piracy arguments, which many proponents are not really conscious of, is that the rights holders are not monolithic. You're telling today's film production companies and professionals that they don't deserve to get paid because of what other firms did in the past.
A vast amount of film production is carried out by small startup-like businesses that have about as much in common with the big studios as a small-time app developer has with Apple Computer. Should I be able to download apps for free because iPhones are expensive?