Though Prince is indeed maddening there is a logical reason why Prince does what he does. Fans just can't understand it, or choose not too. A lot of writers and musicians have what i like to call a Dickinson complex. Which is a reserved personal connection to their work. Emily Dickinson wrote, nearly 2,000 poems and had them locked away in a chest in her room. It wasn't until her sister found them after she died, that they were published and praised. Lets face facts here, Prince doesn't write for us, he doesn't sing for us, and he doesn't play for us. He plays for himself. Most musicians are like this. The only reason he does release his stuff, is to get money. That's all. And there's nothing wrong with that. And if he writes and composes for himself, is it that strange that he would want to lock to it away? No... it's his personal property Each song written and composed is laced with his own personal feelings.
This onslaught against bootleggers isn't about money, or trying to put fans in jail, or even reclaiming the internet. It's about protecting what's dear to him. Do i support his actions? No, but I understand where he's coming from. Prince doesn't see bootleggers as a threat to his monetary gain, he's already established that he can sustain a career with just performing, He sees the bootlegging as a sign of a disrespect for his personal work and for his feelings.