To Pay or not Pay for Media: Predicting Illegal and Legal Media Consumption Behavior

Finding ways to understand both illegal and legal media consumption with the same variables may help media managers begin to understand how to better combat media piracy and recoup some investment from illegal media consumption behaviors. Based on survey results, this research indicates that past predictors were correlated to intentions to pirate media, past media piracy behaviors, password sharing and to some degree legal media consumption behaviors. Generally, media consumers find media piracy acceptable, but also feel media creators should be paid. This study finds that people want to get media anyway they can. Media piracy is acceptable, common and easy. While people with more income will pay for media, social justifications entice everyone to use illegal means to get the media they want.