Digital piracy has the potential to devalue creativity by creating a culture of free products. When consumers have easy access to pirated works without monetary compensation, this will reduce the perceived value of creative work.

Creators may therefore feel discouraged from pursuing ambitious projects, fearing that their efforts will earn them neither success nor income. This can lead to a general decline in the quality of the work produced. This decline in artistic quality can have long-term repercussions for the creative, entertainment and technology industries as a whole.

Moreover, when the decision-makers in these companies plan their investments, this omnipresent threat will have a major impact on the type of products that will be developed. Risk-taking will probably be increasingly limited to a minimum, and companies will prefer to go for “safe” products, which they are sure will appeal to the majority of the public, in order to guarantee themselves a minimum of guaranteed income. One of the consequences of this new rise in piracy will  be a standardization of products in a number of creative professions. Of course, small technology companies and independent creators are even harder hit, as we saw in our previous article.

Digital piracy therefore has important consequences for creativity and investment. The devaluation of creativity, the reduction of investment, and the challenges faced by smaller industry players are all complex facets of this problem. Solutions require a comprehensive approach, ranging from the evolution of business models to the implementation of technological and legislative measures. By educating the public about the underlying issues, society can aspire to preserve creative vitality while protecting the investments needed for innovation and cultural diversity.