Oink File-Sharing Case Illustrates Cultural Paradigm Shift

The acquittal, last week of Allan Elis, a bright software engineer who founded the popular Bit Torrent tracker Oink, highlighted the profound changes that are happening to the moral fabric of the Western world, a shift that could spell doom for content owners globally.

The verdict delivered was a slap in the face for the likes of the BPI, which not only acknowledged that it was hugely disappointing, but also because it was a unanimous decision even if all bets were stacked against Mr Ellis.

The site brought him money (bucketloads of money), fame and scores of positive comments either on ITProportal and many other mainstream websites including the likes of Dailymail.

Some commentators have said that the music industry has been "ripping off" consumers for years and that neither do manufacturers of crowbars get prosecuted for "facilitating burglary" nor are alcohol producers liable for crimes committed by the drunks.

The problem is that none of the arguments above hold their grounds. The music industry, unlike say UK's transport system,  is an open market where you can choose to listen to any artist you want and there are plenty of alternative, free or paid for.

You are not limited in your choice, just as you would be limited when you want to travel from A to B on trains. If you are not happy about the price, don't buy the tracks or CDs, boycott it, source second hand items or go for a legitimate source like Spotify.

Stealing music tracks (i.e. taking away something from its legitimate owners without prior permission) cannot be morally justified whatever way you look at it.