I can see validity in both points to a degree (although far more cred to Deadly Pixxxie's "faction", especially since she speaks from experience.).
But I do want to toss this out there:
There are some sites that I only take free samples from for the pure reason that I am flat dead busted A@@ broke. I would love a membership to CindyPhillips.net (hell, the woman inspired a great Get of Fenris Galliard I roleplay on Infinity Bound), but I just can't afford it, not making minimum wage and having a wife and child at the same time.
Having said that, if I can be broke, and only take free samples… why does the adult with the good job need piracy?
I can sympathize with the starving guy stealing a loaf of bread, but what the hell if you had the $1.79 in your pocket the entire time!?
If I had the cash, I'd sign up for a half dozen sites. But I don't. And I don't use BitTorrent either.
I would add that I don't think anyone objects to you benefitting from free downloads that are intended as free downloads; content providers provide free samples so that, having sampled them, you will be inclined to purchase their product when and if you actually do have the financial means. Free samples are exactly that: free. It's when you step beyond that and take things that are not meant to be free. When you, Magnus Magneto, or my cousin Billy decide that the rules that apply to the rest of the population don't apply to you, serious problems result.
In any case, this is probably a topic best saved for another thread or another forum. MM has made his point- he does not feel that he ought to be obligated to pay for the work that FBBers, their trainers, their sponsors, and their promoters do. Others have expressed the opinion that piracy harms the industry; there is a staggering amount of research that both supports and refutes that claim (check out some of the claims made by those who supported free music downloads before Napster got overhauled…)
Ultimately, I suspect it essentially comes down to (a) what happens to you when/if you get caught (and criminals rarely if ever believe that they will get caught or that their individual crimes are actually that serious) and (b) how well you can sleep with yourself at night.
Anyway, I just tallied it up; I'm currently paying for subscriptions to four members only sites- Awefilms, Amy's Conquest, Cindy Phillips (and, btw evansnowwolf, that's a great site once you can afford it), and powerbeauties. Would I be willing to subscribe to more? Possibly, depending on (a) the quality of the content and (b) the frequency of the updating. The thing is, I see it as a reasonable investment in a sport, a fetish, and a pasttime that I enjoy. If I didn't find it reasonable, then I would stop spending the time and the money and find something else to do.
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