Abstract:
This mini dissertation examines the challenges that arise in protecting copyright in the digital age
due to piracy. With the rise and emergence of new technologies and the internet, piracy has only
become a prevalent problem that threatens the economic viability of creative industries, harms the
reputation, integrity, and dignity of copyright owners, and discourages innovation worldwide.
Piracy has caused significant issues for copyright owners by infringing upon their exclusive rights
to distribute their works without permission while profiting from their creations.
Due to the development of digital technology and the internet, it has become simpler for
individuals to stealthily duplicate and distribute protected works, threatening the economic
viability of creative industries. Piracy drastically decreases the number of legal sales of intellectual
works, which costs a lot of money for authors, publishers, and other key stakeholders. It can have
serious financial repercussions on both individual copyright holders and entire companies. This
paper looks at several types of piracy, including peer-to-peer file sharing, streaming, and illicit
downloads, and how they affect artists and businesses.
Due to the works being distributed without permission, it leads to a loss of control over how the
work is presented and interpreted by the public. For instance, lower-quality pirated versions of a
movie or album could give people a bad impression of the overall calibre of the work, which could
influence sales and the reputation of the copyright owner. If creators are not assured of protection
from piracy, creators might be less inclined to develop new works. Hence, the cultural and financial
importance of the creative industry may be significantly impacted.
Furthermore, this study looks at the difficulties faced by the current legal and technological
solutions used to prevent piracy. Due to the number of pirate websites that are available on the
internet, it is evident that although legal and technological remedies have made a dent in piracy,
they are still insufficient to solve the issue fully. This mini dissertation finishes with suggestions
on how to strengthen copyright protection in the digital age, which includes but is not limited to
better legal frameworks, stakeholder cooperation, and public awareness campaigns.
