Thursday, May 12, 2005

Legality & Morality

A conversation started in the elevator yesterday.

Moreshwar: "I paid for the music in the form of cassette tapes. So I can convert the tapes to mp3 for my personal use."
Onkar: "mp3 is patented format. You are supposed to pay royalty for using it. Use ogg instead."
Shrivallabh: "Any sort of unauthorized copying or reproduction of music in cassette tapes is prohibited"

Assuming that
- Mp3 patent is valid in India.
- There is no law in India to enforce what Shrivallabh says.

Moreshwar is legally as well as morally wrong.
Onkar is legally correct but morally wrong.
Shrivallabh is legally as well as morally correct.


What is your opinion?
What would you choose?