[H]umans are copying machines. We learn by imitating one another. That’s how we learn to speak. That’s how we learn social norms. That’s how culture happens. Everything we do is an invitation to copy. And now, thanks to digitization and the Internet, we can express that in ways that we couldn’t before. The Internet is the ultimate copying machine, and it’s affecting many business models. There are times when piracy is a great idea and there are times when it’s not; that’s why I call it a dilemma. The point is, though, it is not a dead end. It’s in the interest of all who deal with the buying and selling and sharing of ideas to confront piracy and its implications now — that is, to reevaluate their business models so they include ways to capitalize on a freer flow of ideas and on more sharing of information and content.
- Edward Baker in We are all pirates
- Author: Adriana
- Published: Apr 10th, 2008
- Category: Media, New models, Open source/IP/DRM, Web/Tech
- Comments: 3
Peter
on Apr 10th, 2008
@ 16:43 pm:
I like to think Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee
would concur, certainly made me smile
Crosbie Fitch
on Apr 10th, 2008
@ 18:33 pm:
There is an important difference though between the freedom of pirates and the liberty of civilised men.
Mike Butcher
on Apr 11th, 2008
@ 15:50 pm:
Surely the way to make this work in the future is to both copy AND attribute? In other words, riff on someone else’s idea and link back, as you would on a blog. If people copy but never link back, then we are in trouble. But creating links generates even more value, for the copier and the originator.