Interesting topic on a never ending phenomenon 
I had this discussion also a lot with friends, collegues and businness partners.
My opinion is that it has relatively little to do with the country, type or value of software in a direct manner.
It all has to do with making rules + 'controlling'/enforcing those rules in combination with the 'normal' workings of a human mind.
Let me explain:
THere are laws for stealing. Law enforcement secures these laws and that it is being followed by everyone subjected to those laws.
But, the lawenforcement on software piracy is lacking, better said, not executed actively and/or properly at all.
THIS is the indirect 'root' of all piracy!!
How may cars would be bought, if the keys could be found on nearly every corner, no alarms are going off while taking the car from it's rightfull owner and no cop was searching for you?? I bet it would near that 98% of Armania, even in our welthy countries 
THIS is what's happening in the software market: keys are found everywhere AND there is no proper warning system to the owner AND there is no law enforcement actively pursuing these 'criminals'.
So, the only 2 things that makes us pay the proper price for digital productsis necessity or principal.
Since the whole world with exeption of the 3rd world countries lives in the current informetian era (Internet), the necessity-problem (i.e. can't find another location then the official retailer, don't have the financial meand to buy it, etc.) is brought to a minimum.
This means the principal is what mainly makes us buy the software!
I strongly believe that people have the inert drive to search/go for the most simple solutin to a problem. In this case, this means we 'all' would 'steal' (solution) to get a desired (problem) product if there wasn't any penalty what so ever
There is another factor being born the last decade wich increases the rate/amount of piracy: Up bringing.
The teenagers/young folk of these times don't realy know better than that digital products are found on the internet and that the rewards are the best for the 'searcher'.
This means that it is seen by them as normal behaviour, therefore the principal part is totaly erased from the equasion, wich leaves necessity as the soul one...
I see this with my cousings from 8-16, but I have to admit I notice this in myself to 
I'm 30 and was a teen when the Internet started booming, but I also know how those (beautifull) days were when we went hours to the mall to listen all possible cd's at your favorite record shop and maybe buy one per month, cause money was hard to come by.
I encouter a dubbel personality in me when discussing/thinking about fierce law enforcement on downloading copyrighted products: I know there are people putting in an effort in making them products and should be payed, but I resent the thought that I would have to pay for all those things I have downloaded for free through my entire live or being IP-blocked as a sentence...
I will be the first to admit: This is so biased and wrong!! But, why do I think this way?? This way was thé way for the bigger part of my life, so it's almost excepted as normal in my believes.
This fact is the most concerning one imho: If law enforcement AND proper education in this subject isn't implemented quickly (let's say 1 decade) and correctly, I think 'The Industry' is a sinking ship with it's conventional product payment and distribution setup!
Jm2€ 
