[MineralMan]

"When you steal a car, you inevitably steal it from an individual (unless you manage to take it from a car lot)."

Yes, I should have specified a car lot. The comparison is still apt, given that proviso.

The value of the item is immaterial. Stealing a movie is exactly the same as stealing anything else. It is simply stealing property that belongs to someone else. It's wrong.

[z3n]

"The value of the item is immaterial. Stealing a movie is exactly the same as stealing anything else. It is simply stealing property that belongs to someone else. It's wrong."

Again, in principle, I agree. Theft is theft.

However, what is unique to intellecual property is a system of monopolization that is basically outlawed with other forms of retail.

While you can purchase "Finding Nemo" DVD from various retail outlets, there is only one corporation with rights to produce and distribute it. Thus, they have a monopoly. This is why I bring up the production cost of a DVD being 4cents.
Keep that in mind when you get your typing fingers ready to respond by going back to your car metaphor by saing that a Ford F150 is a 'monopoly' of the Ford Motor Company. While the F150 is chock full of intellectual property rights, including trademarks, patents, and more, the ability to monopolize price of the F150 truck does not rest soley in Intellectual property monompoly. Competition from other manufacturers with equivalent products allows the consumers to influence fair price through market influence.
There is no equivalent product to compete with "Finding Nemo" on the market inherently except that all other DVDs compete. If any one DVD was an equivalent alternative to "Finding Nemo" the corporation that owned the rights to it would probably sue on grounds of Intellectual Property infringment.

If the same conditions existed in the Automobile Industry, you would have Auto Manufacturers who charge 100x the manufacturing cost for their cars. Obviously, that is rediculous, because in the auto industry, no one would buy the car. In the entertainment industry, collusion in built-in.