Digital Media != Physical media. There are some basic rules of physical media that do not apply to digital media :
1) Physical media is a combination of the *state* (structure/topology) of the media PLUS the media itself. To steal (which is the essence of piracy) a physical piece of media requires the removal of the medium AND the state. It denies the originator of the medium AND the state, though if the originator maintains records of the state of the media (for use in a manufacturing process) then the originator has merely been denied the physical medium.
2) Digital media is *pure state*, it has no physical representation. It is not possible to steal digital media, it is only possible to "move" the media (by means of a copy AND/OR delete) functionality.
3) The state of physical media may be converted into digital media by means of digitization. If this process is completed without the consent of the holders of the intellectual rights of the original physical media, this is copyright infringement - it cannot be theft because the originator still retains the full and original media.
4) The state of digital media (the digital media itself) may be converted into the state of a physical media through manufacturing. If this process is completed without the consent of the holders of the digital media, this is copyright infringement - it cannot be theft because the originator still retains the full and original media. The physical medium still belongs to the secondary party, but the configuration of the state of it belongs to originator.
5) The movement of digital media can only be considered "theft" if the original media is deleted as part of the movement process - otherwise backups would all be considered theft, copying would all be theft, copying things into memory, transport would ALL be considered theft. Stopping these functions would be extremely dangerous - without redundancy, the digital media would be highly likely to be lost or damaged through the physical medium storing the digital media becoming damaged/corrupted.
6) Copying does *not* constitute theft - even if it causes loss of revenue - only removal without consent can do that. Loss of revenue due to a breakdown of a business model that relies entirely on the restriction of the flow of information is not legally supported - otherwise there would have to be a legal precident set for EVERY TYPE OF BUSINESS MODEL, ensuring that people did not break them. Business models are made to be tested and broken. They continuously adapt - licencing laws, for example for services, continuously adapt, and have become an effective way for business models to work (licencing a piece of software/number of users etc).
Businesses adapt their models, thats what they *do*. Businesses will rightly get upset when they have invested heavily in their model, but that is life. Ignorance of your business area is not an excuse to try and lock down society into unsustainable and uneconomic practices.
I hope this crashes and burns, to be honest.
)
