So called internet piracy is NOT theft. It is copyright infringement. Theft is when your lawful possession is taken and you can no longer use or enjoy it. Copyright infringement is when you copy a copyrighted work without paying the owner of the copyright. It isn't theft as he still has his work, and still has his copyright.

I think copyright is a good idea to help artists make money, but that the law has got completely out of hand. A twenty year free term with followed by an optional very expensive 10 year extension should be long enough for an artist to make some money from their work. Copyright that last until the authors death plus 70 years is not motivating any dead authors to create new works. Long copyright terms are locking up our culture to be exploited by large corporations.

Intellectual property is not property. They are artificial government monopolies intended to foster the arts and sciences, and prevent fraud (trademarks). The law should be revised to make copyrights and patents work for art and innovation, and not for locking up ideas and art for the sole benefit of big business.

PS It is bollocks to claim that every freely copied work is a lost sale.