Yup. And the people that like to get the free games downplay it. I love politics!
Unfortunately the only people interested in doing a study of the effects of piracy are the companies themselves. As a result, people dismiss the claims...which is too bad because I'm sure they aren't all bogus.
I know my roommate has bought more games when the bit torrent site he visited got shut down. He recently found another one, and his purchases have declined. Even of games like Prince of Persia where he purchased (and enjoyed) the one prior. A sample size of one doesn't tell much, so I figure it's a crap shoot as to whether or not his actions are unique. I did do some research on software piracy in my Computers and Society course (which was a surprisingly cool course), but there isn't much variety in the studies. And as long as they are done by the software companies, no one is going to believe them.