I think that you have to look at the forces of piracy as the water pressure behind a large damn. If there is a hole in the damn, the water will pour through. You can get into the physics of it-- the why-- but it doesn't change the fact that it will pour out. It is a problem by design, not intent. Folks intend on being good, and software makers intend on providing good services for a fee, but nonetheless people poke holes in "digital security" any way they can, and anything that can be done to mitigate or stop it helps to ensure that good folks support software makers with $.

Reducing the barriers to purchasing and creating feasible pricing structures helps. That is if it is simply less trouble for folks to purchase something, then they will go that route more often than not.