I see more mental gymnastics in justifying the old payment models when we've invented an almost free and unlimited way to distribute media, than in telling people to torrent stuff.
If we discovered a free and unlimited source of entertainment then we wouldn't need to charge for that either...
Distribution is free, but because production is not, we have to pay at consumption time.
So - an honest discussion of copyright infringment should avoid distorted, emotive language such as "steal".
Digital goods manufacturers can't simply price their goods without considering the ease of access that people have to these. Well, in reality, they do consider it. It is why PC games for example tend to be much cheaper and go on sale much more often than console games. It hasn't really stopped the PC gaming market from growing every year though.
Piracy is a pricing problem, not a theft problem. Just look at streaming services.
Also, you might be thinking of immediate profits but most of these businesses rely on much longer lifecycles. A child might pirate game 1 when they are 13 and then when they are 17 and have their first job they might buy game 2 on a sale (from the same companyl and when they are adults will keep buying the newly released games because they have been converted. This is the case for many.
Don't be silly and reduce complex issues to simple phrases.
There was a time that the only practical way to see media was to torrent/IRC/newsgroup it. But the ridiculously low cost of streaming services and their ease of use just makes it not worth it to me.
I get Disney+ for free from my home Internet provider and I get Netflix for free from my cellular provider. I got Hulu during the Black Friday special for $1 per month for a year.
You don't get those for free - the price is just bundled with something else.
App store used to be the gem and pinnacle of the software world still 10 years ago. People used to check out the app store selection during their coffee break etc. just to see what cool new apps are available now. Because of Apples strict policy lot of low effort garbage and malware apps were non-existent.
Now though the app store is pretty much like a shady warez website filled with "FREE" scam apps. For every single "FREE" or even Paid app you now have to instantly check the reviews to see what's wrong with the app and then read the in app purchases list.
FREE but PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP for the calculator is now only $9.99 a month or $499.90 for a lifetime license! Oh, but you can still use the free app, but you'll be limited to 4 calculations per week!
Streaming services I can understand to some extend, but the endless fragmentation, decreasing quality and rising prices are making them also pretty bad deal.
Maybe the EU regulation to force Apple open iPhone will at least fix the non-streaming app issue in EU.