“The trade-off isn’t only ethical or economic,” Andreaux adds. “It’s also about reliability, privacy and personal security.”
Abed Kataya, digital content manager at SMEX, a Beirut-based digital rights organization focused on internet policy in the Middle East and North Africa, says piracy in the region is shaped less by culture than by structural barriers.
“I see that piracy in MENA is not a cultural choice; rather, it has multiple layers,” Kataya tells WIRED Middle East.
“First, when the…

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