Another Knock against Amazon and Google
June 20, 2009
Cory Doctorow’s “Internet Crapshoot: How Internet Gatekeepers Stifle Progress” opens a new front in the copyright, objectivity, and intellectual property war. The article appeared in Internet Evolution. Mr. Doctorow has a high profile and will elicit significant discussion in the blogosphere. He said:
That danger is that a couple of corporate giants will end up with a buyer’s market for creative works, control over the dominant distribution channel, and the ability to dictate the terms on which creative works are made, distributed, appreciated, bought, and sold. And the danger of that is that these corporate giants might, through malice or negligence, end up screwing up the means by which the world talks to itself, carrying on its cultural discourse — a discourse that ultimately sets the agendas for law, politics, health, climate, justice, crime, education, child-rearing, and every other important human subject.
The article contains five additional sections that lays out clearly Mr. Doctorow’s argument that Amazon and Google represent a challenge to innovation. I found the hooking of the market driven economy to a stifling of innovation refreshing. His conclusion comes right from Speech 101 with a call to action: “Stop working for gatekeepers.” The idea is that individuals can exercise considerable influence over the Amazons and Googles of our market driven world. He asserted:
For so long as copyright holders think like short-timers, seeking a quick buck instead of a healthy competitive marketplace, they’re doomed to work for their gatekeepers, rather than the other way around.
Interesting. There are several thoughts flapping through my mind. I will mention one. The short term thinking is going to be tough to shake. There’s the old hierarchy of needs notion. Then there’s the stock market and the imperative to make a buck. And there’s a human’s less than stellar skill in dealing with uncertainty.
In short, gatekeepers have an advantage. Game’s not over, but time is not on the side of anyone except Amazon and Google. Both continue to expand and pretty soon the “space” will be exhausted. A new paradigm will emerge if our pal Hegel is correct. But can those short sighted folks “see” that and make here and now decisions that will exert sufficient influence before monopolies take hold. Maybe? Maybe not? Great for lawyers, though.
Stephen Arnold, June 21, 2009
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