Marshall Brain's Blog

I believe the same principle would work for software.
There are a lot of illegal copy of Windows XP running worldwide. If the software would cost, lets say 50 USD, a lot more people would buy the official version with the bennefits of support, update's etc.
I even think that, in this case Microsoft, will generate more turnover if they would lower their sales prices.
 

More volume is obviously favourable to the retailer (server) and record company, but without a structure change to the royalties payable to the artists, it does not clearly help them. As it is, there is a loss from the change from the "album" model, where the consumer assumes he has to purchase all ten songs even if he only wants one. Another problem in scale is that at this moment the US government sets the "statuatory" rate to be paid for the copyright of the underlying musical/lyrical composition, for each single copy of the song sold at somewhere around eight cents. Everyone wants music cheap, when, like the minimum wage, it is historically very cheap already. Everyone wants musicians to dance for nickels on the street.only the record companies and a very small percentage of musicians can even make a middle class living or more. All these hair brained schemes when what is neccesary is for people to have the moral fibre to not steal candy from the store, just because the front door has fallen off. Try reading this to see "how it works".

http://www.mercenary.com/balofmidarby.html