# Cable Theft **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 2, 2003, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137 "2003-01-02T02:51:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![flex727](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/258eb7/32.png) [@flex727](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flex727)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2003, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137/41 "2003-01-04T17:42:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by metroshane \* > \*\*\>\>\>I’ve always had a problem with this logic. Those losses assume that people who are currently stealing cable would have actually been paying for it had they not been able to get it illegally, which is totally absurd. Same with software piracy. No one is out billions in sales since I believe most people acquiring this stuff would never pay for it anyway. > > I’ve always had a problem with THIS logic. Just think if you were the service provider…would you let all the people that normally wouldn’t buy…have it for free? When I play music at a club, I want to get paid for every person that walks through the door. If you wouldn’t normally pay the cover, then get out. If I was messaging feet for a living and someone used my service but didn’t pay me just because they otherwise wouldn’t have used my service…then I’m pissed. \*\* Ah, but your feet message scenario is entirely different. For the cable company, the marginal cost for the person using the cable service without paying is essentially zero. I do agree that they have a right to be pissed (and I think cable theft is immoral), but it is definitely misleading to state the cable companies are losing $6 billion due to theft. Same goes for the music and software industries. ---
**Author:** ![Bongmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Bongmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongmaster)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137/42 "2003-01-04T20:29:44Z")
Let me clarify here: I’m not saying piracy is ok, or even that compaines don’t lose money over it. What I am saying is that these companies shouldn’t be claiming billions of dollars in lost revenue because of it. They are assuming that each and every instance of theft is a lost sale, and that’s simply not true. I’ve copied countless software titles since back in the Atari 800XL days, and of those I would have only paid for a very small percentage if I could not have gotten it for free. Of course there is a certain percentage of people out there that are copying what they would be buying if it could not be had for free, but my stance is that this is a MUCH smaller number than the industries claims. ---
**Author:** ![ElwoodCuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/edb3f5/32.png) [@ElwoodCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElwoodCuse)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2003, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137/43 "2003-01-06T18:05:57Z")
What cable company are you on? My cousin actually did a few of these kinds of commercials, but we have a different company so we never get to see them. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137/44 "2003-01-06T18:55:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mister\_me \* > \*\*That is very interesting. > > Well, I didn’t come up with 6.6 million > > I CAN give you one solid number though: number of illegals in 2002 in a (specific) 92,109 (homes passed system):602 (homes). > > Interesting point though: of those 602 were any repeat offenders? I’l have to look into that. \*\* Actually I used 6.6 billion as they said up top and not million. However, your numbers here seem to be more realistic, I got around 0.6%. I can see around a half percet of people stealing cable, but not 6% or more. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cable-theft/146137.md?page=2)