One might wonder about the ratio of Nintendo’s legal budget to actual piracy losses.

Having been a college student back in the days of Napster (and ignoring the complete dearth at the time in physical stores of the sorts of music I was getting into), $20 CDs with one good track were not a value proposition. So when I downloaded a track, there was zero actual financial hit to whatever label or the RIAA … it’s a sale that never would have happened. You didn’t lose money; you gained exposure.

My last console was an SNES, so I have no horse in this race. But being actively hostile to your customers generally ends poorly.

As a grown-ass adult, I’ve spent more than $2,000 on music on Beatport, mostly $1.29 at a time replacing the stuff I pirated for better-quality versions.

When you have to take away rights that used to be guaranteed by the first-sale doctrine, it’s likely a sign there’s something wrong with your business model moreso than users causing so much chaos (and profit loss) that you have no choice.

This isn’t some fly-by-night AI toaster company that’ll shut down services in a year and leave you fucked. It’s Nintendo. They’re going to survive just fine.