How Much Do Music and Movie Piracy Really Hurt the U.S. Economy by Raustilia and Sprigman - Assignment Example

            Kal Raustilia and Chris Sprigman discount the statistical provisions which have been advanced by proponents of Protect IP Act (PIPA) and Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) to the effect that online piracy has cost the US economy at least 200 dollars annually, and leads to the loss of 750,000 jobs in the United States. Instead, the two argue that the figures are too inflated to be real. For instance, Kal Raustilia and Chris Sprigman argue that the loss of 750,000 American jobs is double the number of employees in the entire filming industry, in 2010 (Raustilia and Sprigman, 1).     

            Kal Raustilia and Chris Sprigman cite Tim Lee’s observation that statistical provisions as these have been characterized by methodological problems such as estimation and double and triple counting (Raustilia and Sprigman, 1).

            Nevertheless, in a more interesting twist, Raustilia and Sprigman charge that there are no losses which are incurred from downloading. Partly, this is because there are some cases of piracy that substitute for legitimate transactions, according to Raustilia and Sprigman. The two observe that even in some instances, even the people who sell audio or audiovisual products never bought them, but instead pirated them (Raustilia and Sprigman, 1).