The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) has accelerated its work to attack physical piracy in recent years. The laws governing the unauthorized distribution of material for commercial gain have been stiffened, along with penalties for those caught capturing theatrical movies. Los Angeles Police recently installed a video surveillance network with the aim of deterring street vendors from selling pirated material.

Street vendors selling pirated warez (music, movies, applications) are nothing new, especially in New York. One of the more noticeable differences with this more aggressive campaign has been the scattering of street vendors to some extent. Many street vendors, especially the homeless, are ambivalent regarding the tightened laws. However, some of the more stable street vendors have brought their craft indoors, in an effort to avoid prosecution, which for the most part consists of local law enforcement walking right past a warez distributor.

When the colder weather hits, or perhaps out of caution for the rare instance of enforcement, street vendors, at least in New York, have been setting up shop inside various storefronts. So the next time you stop for Jamaican food on South Conduit Blvd., don't be surprised if there's a former street vendor doing business inside. Remarkably, the store proprietors appear to have little problem with this, as a symbiotic relationship between legitimate business and not-so-legitimate business is beginning to take root.

Another interesting aspect is the infrastructure that former street vendors now provide as their business is pushed indoors. Along with their warez display, the seller carries a portable DVD player or lap top, allowing patrons to test their warez before buying. This service is rarely provided by street vendors. Although no concrete numbers exist, business appears to be doing well. Vendors are selling warez, and people are buying - all in the convenience of a warm food store.

So there's an economy being developed here, with a size that remains unclear. It's large, as the demand for music, movies and applications remains steadfast. The supply is there as well, providing jobs to those who would otherwise be destitute. But like any story, there are two sides.

A just published story from the BSA (Business Software Alliance), with the apparent goal to motivate anti-piracy action, states that if the United Sates eliminated just 10% of software piracy, it “…would deliver an additional 32,000 new jobs, $6.7 billion in tax revenues, and $41 billion in economic growth in the United States.”