Here is a interesting way to view, prepare for and compete against businesses copying and pirating your content or products.
Piracy is a business model. Anne Sweeney, co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president of Disney-ABC Television Group, announced during a keynote address at MIPCOM. While her focus was on the pirating of media content, the same message applies for manufactured goods.
“It exists to serve a need in the market….. Pirates compete the same way we do – through quality, price and availability. We don’t like the model but we realize it’s competitive enough to make it a major competitor going forward.”
What’s so amazing about this?
Taking the piracy is a business model approach allows us to analyze the business model and how it is acting or reacting to the economic fundamentals in the market.
Instead of locking up our company secrets and seeking punishments for the pirates, we can analyze why and where our “competition” is taking advantage of us in order to strengthen and modify our business model.
None of this changes the actual situation. But it might change business strategies and planning when you realize they are competitors and they are here to stay.
What are the advantages of being a pirate, and the disadvantages?
Why are there opportunities for them? What should I be doing that I’m not?
How can I change my organization to take back the market from the pirates?
Once weaknesses in the piracy business model are identified they can be exploited. When strengths are discovered, they can be integrated into our own business model.
The fight against piracy should begin with a focused analysis of the market environment, existing business models and new strategies on how to adapt to the changing market conditions and exploit them to your advantage.
We can stop focusing on the individual “pirates” and their control or capture, and move toward competing intelligently against them.
Related Links
Netribution – Disney Co-Chair recognizes ‘piracy is a business model’
Boing Boing – Disney exec: Piracy is just a business model
@MIPCOM Piracy is a business model
Lee Iwan Accumulated Experience 
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