I’m asking you how the creator of the piece of media can tell the difference, because they can’t.
If I make a chair, and someone steals it, I’m down a chair. If I make a chair and someone doesn’t buy it, I still have the chair. There’s a difference to the creator here that isn’t there with digital media. That’s why piracy and theft are not the same thing.
So you agree there is a difference then.
edit: Revisiting this, as I’ve said before:
You seem unwilling to hold a consistent picture in this dialogue as you keep trying to argue the same thing.
I’m asking you how the creator of the piece of media can tell the difference, because they can’t.
If I make a chair, and someone steals it, I’m down a chair. If I make a chair and someone doesn’t buy it, I still have the chair. There’s a difference to the creator here that isn’t there with digital media. That’s why piracy and theft are not the same thing.
You seem unwilling to hold a consistent picture in this dialogue as you keep trying to argue the same thing.
edit: and the answer to how a creator would tell the difference is between the incomes of the two events, one with piracy, another without.