The Theft of Ideas as a Cybercrime: Downloading and Changes in the Business Model of the Creative Arts

This chapter explores the theft of creative ideas as a cybercrime and focuses upon the rather contradictory intellectual property issues introduced by the technologies of digital downloading via file sharing. It examines what has changed and how technology has disrupted creative arts to the point that it begins to challenge intellectual property law. The chapter also explores what is actually being protected and by whom. It outlines the counter-case for file sharing by looking at the changing business model of the music industry within the context of digital and networked technologies and at who the creative industries are in terms of creative assets and creative artists. The chapter also examines the practice of speculative invoicing to manage and even 'police' illegal file sharing by criminalizing the shared space. It further explores the paradox of circulation and control and the balance that needs to be obtained in order to find a balance to keep intellectual creations alive and help them develop.