i have a couple of friends who buy bootlegs(of official stuff), and whenever i've brought it up, they basically say, "we know what we're doing, but who cares, it's cheaper." "the public" is not as moral as one might like to believe...
There's this 'music store' on a main strip where I live in Queens that makes no secret of the bootlegs it produces and sells. In fact, all the equipment mentioned in that article is right in the back room of this shop - at least that's the rumor. There's no way the average joe can NOT realize what kind of store this is - and by average joe, I include the cops. They know and yet this place has been there for years. Open seven days. Right in the middle of legitimate businesses. I've never bought anything from them, but obviously plenty of people have and still do.
If I understood the article correctly, it's not about bootlegs but pirates of available products.
If I want a movie or a music CD/DVD enough to buy it, I certainly want the best possible quality and not some crappy CD-R or DVD-R. But the original product should be high quality, too. I stopped buying DVD movies because I am fed up with spending my money on a DVD and six months later they release a "director's cut" or an "ultimate version" with unseen material.
As to CDs, I dropped my purchases about 90% because of DRM and other "copy protection" that reduces the quality of CDs to sub audio CD quality. I would buy from labels who respect their customers and deliver the best possible quality.
So - yes, people should not buy pirates - but they also should not buy crappy corporate releases.
Well the thing with cheaper... In countries like Romania, where the economy is as compact as Tatooine after being blown away, an average person can't really afford to buy official stuff. That is, the CD's are at EU prize, but the income is considerably lower. So here the "pirate" industry is blooming and considered a necessity, really, especially for students & co who can't afford buying official stuff.