Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: The Ethical Implications of File Sharing

Likely the most controversial topic regarding e-property is the sharing of files over peer to peer networks. Most web users have shared files at some point in their lives and been made happy by it; however, a real ethical dilemma occurs when files containing copyrighted materials are shared. Our speakers will use utilitarianism to provide a moral basis for determining what is right and wrong in this issue. Sara Baase is a university level professor and has created a compilation of social, legal, and ethical issues that concern the field of computers and the Internet.

Baase believes that file sharing is unethical and unprofessional: “Violation of copyrights, patents, trade secrets and the terms of license agreements is prohibited by law in most circumstances. Even when software is not so protected, such violations are contrary to professional behavior. Copies of software should be made only with proper authorization. Unauthorized duplication of materials must not be condoned” (A Gift of Fire, 448). Baase makes file sharing sound very upsetting to many people.

Mike Banic is a leading author for the Business Communications Review, and he asserts that, ethics, morality, and legality aside, “Peer-to-peer (P2P) networking has become one of the dominant forms of electronic communication around the world, and the use of P2P networks shows no signs of slowing down” (Banic, 63-65). In the same article, he even says that “recent studies show that 60 percent of all Internet traffic is P2P traffic” (65). Logically, if file sharing was not a beneficial practice, it would not comprise over half of all internet traffic.
Amy R. Zunk, a reporter for Geek.com, on the trial verdict against Morpheus, had this to say: “I do know a lot of people who use LimeWire and other file-sharing applications… They buy a copy of something for themselves and then diseminate [sic] a copy on the Internet as a way to keep information free, to keep vendors costs at bay, and to help out where they can (“Morpheus Found Guilty”). Reaffirmed once again, large numbers of people benefit from file sharing. Zunk even makes it sound ethically right to share files, by saving people money and getting back at producers. Despite Baase’s reflection that file sharing is illegal, utilitarianism backs up Banic and Zunk’s opinions that file sharing is a worldwide enterprise that benefits untold numbers of people by its happenings. Thus, Banic and Zunk will take this argument. What it is essential to realize about this verdict though, is the verity that two areas comprise the win: social utility created in the form of happiness for the people involved; and a correction in the royalties and benefits that the files’ original producers receive, to what the public would consider a more acceptable level. Many more people benefit from file sharing, than are hurt.

Other posts on Utilitarianism and online activites:
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Should Spamming be Allowed?
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Introduction
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: The Ethical Implications of File Sharing
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: The Openness of Windows Source Code
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Reporting Assault and Theft of E-Property in Government Databases

Works Cited
Baase, Sara. A Gift of Fire: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues for Computers and the Internet. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall/Pearson Education, 2003.
Banic, Mike. "Resolving The P2P Dilemma." Business Communications Review Jan 2007: 63-65. ProQuest Computing. ProQuest. American U Lib. 11 Feb 2007 http://proquest.umi.com.proxyau.wrlc.org/pqdweb?did=1200701421&sid=3&Fmt=3&clientId=31806&RQT=309&VName=PQD.
Dyer-Witheford, Nick. "E-Capital and the Many-Headed Hydra." Critical Perspectives on the Internet. Ed. Greg Elmer. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2002.
Gates, Bill. "Why I Hate Spam." Microsoft.com. 23 Jun 2003. Microsoft Corp. 11 Feb 2007 http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ofnote/06-23wsjspam.mspx.
Graham, Gordon. The Internet: A Philosophical Inquiry. New York: Routledge, 1999.
Kizza, Joseph Migga. Computer Network Security and Cyber Ethics. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2002.
Lettice, John. "MS Windows Source Code Escapes Onto Internet." The Register 13 Feb 2004. 11 Feb 2007 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/02/13/ms_windows_ source_code_escapes/.
Mill, John Stuart. On Liberty and Utilitarianism. New York: Bantam Books, 1993.
Riley, James. "Users told: Report all hacks." Wiretapped. 19 Nov 2000. 11 Feb 2007 http://the-other.wiretapped.net/security/info/papers/law-enforcement/australian-federal-police/afp-1998-mar-report-all-hacks.txt.
Zunk, Amy R.. "Morpheus Found Guilty In File-Sharing Case." Geek.com. 9 Oct 2006. 11 Feb 2007 http://www.geek.com/news/geeknews/2006Oct/gee2006100903 9058.htm.