can downloading games be legal??

[Kyuzumaki]

ok say i have a game..... to be specific it was tiberium sun, and my little brother runs over the CD (which should have never been on the floor to begin with) with the computer chair. Now I have a destroyed cd but still a valid key.

Is it legal for me to bittorent the iso and burn myself a new copy of the cd??

 

[Destructobot]

No. You have a legal right to make a single copy for your own use (it's unclear if this applies to copy protected media though), you do not have a right to recieve a copy from someone else, and no one else has the right to give you a copy.

 

[Bowser128]

It's illegal because it's not your copy.

That is why people ignore the stupid laws.

 

[Sinkhead]

I would say it isn't legal but it's not ethically wrong.

- Sam

 

[pikachucrackpipe]

ok say i have a game..... to be specific it was tiberium sun, and my little brother runs over the CD (which should have never been on the floor to begin with) with the computer chair. Now I have a destroyed cd but still a valid key.

Is it legal for me to bittorent the iso and burn myself a new copy of the cd??

if you have a valid key you can download/run from a copy as long as you only use the valid key you purchased.

 

[Issac]

err..
It is legal... atleast in sweden..
or.... wait... maybe it isn't... anyway.

it SHOULDN*T be illegal...

 

[adgloride]

You have a valid key so I can see it being legal.

 

[[M]artin]

Move to Sweden, then when you beat the game, you can move back.

 

[jeklnoo]

hehe, getting legal advice from a site dedicated to pirating (aka stealing, but dont flame me) is probably not the best idea in the world.

 

[nintendofreak]

This is really the way that Steam runs. You can buy the key, activate ONCE with the cd, and then download onto as many computers as you wish. But you cant use teh same account on 2pc's at the same time. (in reality, you buy the key, huh?)

Id say yes, it would be ok IMO to download the ISO. They've got your money, you should be entitled to using your key.

 

[Intruder]

In this case it is legal to download a backup of a game you have accidentaly destroyed.
The "absolutely legal" way of course is e-mail the publisher,tell them what happened and ask for a game disk or ask them the same thing you asked here

 

[Kyuzumaki]

Well my solution was to get a lend of a friends copy and burn a new one but I was just curious.

Same goes for NDS games if you own a copy of a game but are incapable of ripping it to put on your cart is it illegal to download one since you have already payed the publisher for his/her work it seems ony fair you can use it.

 

[thegame07]

downloading games with copyright still intact is illegal no matter what you do.

 

[Kyuzumaki]

when u say it like that it makes sense if you hold the copyright then you are the only person who can make copys.

Does that not mean that "backing up" is also illegal eg DVD's and stuff ( i specifically mean ones you own )

 

[thegame07]

yeah even if you have the game you still are not allowed to download it.

 

[outphase]

The whole "delete in 24 hrs" is a misinterpretation of fair use cited by ROM sites.

 

[jimmy j]

Its a silly law, but its a law all the same

Personally, I'd download it anyway

 

[.TakaM]

I think most people will answer you with, while it's ethically fine, it is technically illegal.

I feel a little guilty downloading roms, but not at all when I download ones I have paid for, and still own.
If I had the hardware, I'd rip them myself

 

[friedchicken]

its illegal. call them up to send you a new one. ask your friend to lend you his original so you can play it or rip it yourself, which is also illegal cuz its isnt your copy.

yeah but it should be legal to rip it if you own it and your cd fuck up.

 

[Lukeage]

Copyright laws in most countries are far behind the times and really need to be updated. Unfortunately, because the large media cartels have all the money and can persuade the politicians to make the laws benefit them rather than the public. Given copyright was originally created to promote the development of new works, not let them resell you the same movie/book/game 100000 times over for the rest of time, this is something I really have an issue with.

To give you an idea of how far behind laws in Australia were/are, up until last year, it was illegal to format shift music. This meant that anyone with music ripped from a CD was breaking the law. It was only last year when Australia got its first online music store, so for all the years previous to then, you could pretty much guarantee that anyone who owned an mp3 player had broken the law to put their music on it.