>> "There simply is no Netflix in most parts of the world that gives you reliable access to a huge movie library for peanuts."
True but you can still get movies via DVD or VHS is those places. e.g. If I don't have access to Spotify it does't give me a valid excuse to pirate. I can still purchase through iTunes or buy CD's.
I'd not really consider DVD/CDs as the same thing as digital downloads. I'd love to purchase digital movies/music, but there's no way I'll buy a CD/DVD as they're useless to me.
IMO that isn't a valid reason to pirate it's just a crazy sense of entitlement. They've made it available to you in a reasonable way but it's still not good enough for you because it's not exactly what you want.
1) buy CD/DVDs (except the ones that are unavailable or hard to find) and rip them (assuming this is sufficiently legal) then throw away the useless pieces of plastic you just paid premium for (which in some regions equates your license), or
2) buy CD/DVDs (except the ones that are unavailable, etc) and put up with plastic crap that is bulky, unreliable and slow, or
3) not buy anything
It's ridiculous, this is the 21st century. They can fit a whole season of some serial onto a micro-SD card, but instead you want me to buy a "box set" of cardboard junk and plastic that is larger than the laptop I intend to watch it on? (which, incidentally, doesn't have a DVD drive for pretty much the same reason it doesn't play cassette tapes or vinyl records either)
Five years ago I had a fire, packed salvageable stuff with smoke damage in big cardboard storage boxes. Over the years I've unpacked and cleaned almost all of the items. The box with all my CDs? They are probably fine (I guess), but I never bothered, I just got them digitally and am happy about those things not taking up any shelf space.
True but you can still get movies via DVD or VHS is those places. e.g. If I don't have access to Spotify it does't give me a valid excuse to pirate. I can still purchase through iTunes or buy CD's.