What We Buy When We "Buy Now"
papers.ssrn.com
papers.ssrn.com
Using the word "buy" instead of "borrow" is done willfully to mislead the consumer as they know that the consumer would otherwise be less likely to enter into the transaction. Buying implies that you have the power of having ownership to a non-exclusive single copy of the work wherein the ownership lies in the ability to command over that ownership (by, for example, giving it to somebody else).
But I wouldn't get too hung up on verbiage. For a while, my jimmies were rustled every time I heard copyright infringement referred to as piracy or theft. In court, get the words right. In regular conversation, all that matters is that people understand what you are saying.
Only if we let the erosion of property rights continue. It will be easier to convince people to accept the power grab where (perpetual) copyright protections are extended to protect anything with firmware when they are first conditioned to believe "buying" means "licensing".
When you bought a record 50 years ago, you were still not "buying" the music. The resell right (for example) was tied to the physicality of it. You couldn't repackage the recorded music and sell it.
(Sometimes people attempt to confuse the situation by conflating the purchase of a copy of a creative work (one instance) with the rights regarding new copies that copyright grants to the creator.)
Regardless, I said property rights, not the temporary monopoly granted by copyright. I'm not talking about minor things covered by copyright. John Deere is the current example of eroded property rights, where thy retain de facto ownership through the copyright of the firmware.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/172953/amazon_kindle_1984_law...
Ex: "Hey can I borrow your Star Wars movies for a marathon this weekend?"
"Sorry bro, all of mine are brented."