I was reading about some of the fuzzy statistics that relate to the current attempts to filter/censor the ‘internet’ and I couldn’t help but wonder how effective it will be. Many other people have pointed out just how hard it would be, but I’m basically a numbers person, for all that I now like qualitatively styled research. I should mention that I’ve lost most of the links to the posts where others have pointed out how hard it will be to filter. But, after reading the statistics that Irene at libertus.net gathered, I couldn’t help reorganising some of those numbers.
Posts Tagged ‘stupidity’
I think you have it wrong!
Funniest thing I’ve read all day. In amongst dealing with lots of (exactly the same) news reports about the Beijing Ticketing Scam for my paper on Online Reading (almost finished), I came across this little gem from Adrianne Pecotic, executive director of Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT):
but movie makers can’t compete with theft[1].
Firstly, that’s what shopkeepers do every day. We could quite easily take what we want from shops, but, hey, they make it easier for us to buy rather than to steal. It doesn’t take a day of faffing around (downloading), getting the right trolley and only the right trolley (piece of software or having the right piece of hardware, instead of the hardware you have), fighting to get to the checkout (fiddling and twiddling with different settings to get it to work) only to find you can’t eat (watch) what you’ve purchased.
For instance, a friend of mine recently downloaded a copy her favourite show. She did this from an online shop. She paid for it. After nearly a whole day of trying to get it to work, authorising, unauthorising, copying to different machines, trying desperately to watch her show, she gave up. She could have simply found a torrent, set it going, then come back in a few hours and hit play. But she did the right thing and missed out. So much for competing with theft, you’re not. You are actively ensuring the continuation of easy to use sources of information and the reduction in the usefulness of your product.
Secondly, I thought they were competing with ‘free’[2]. There are ample examples of music makers competing with ‘free’. There are ample examples of other sectors competing with free. Heck, I have a garden and yet I still buy vegetables.
Thirdly, these ‘cultural industries’ are not competing with free or with theft. They are competing for my dollars. Make it worth my while to see your movies, buy your music. But don’t treat me like a thief. Get those gawdawful ‘public service announcements’ about piracy’ OFF my legitimately purchased DVDs. Make it easy for me to watch them. Compete for my attention and my dollars.
But fercryinoutloud, don’t tell me you have to compete with theft. You’ll lose. It’s simple. Just make it easy, mkay?
And that’s AFACT~
- ISPs join the copyright fight – web – Technology – theage.com.au [↩]
- I’m not enough of an economist to fully appreciate this argument, but I get it [↩]
Tags: randomosity, stupidity
Books: Now disabled with more technology
I’ve had this great idea! Why should the recording industries, both movies and music, get all the fun? What we need is a technology that allows us to restrict readership of books. No more passing books between book pirates.
The idea is simple. Each book comes with a unique visualiser, without which the text is unreadable. The process involves reducing our dependence on black ink. Each book is printed with a light sensitive ink that is not visible without the unique visualiser.
Unique Visualisers (TM) can be developed in upscale versions which project an ‘illuminating’ spectrum across the text allowing for ease of reading. For those with more modest means, a degradable overlay will be available, which will last for at least one reading of the book. Replacement overlays will be available one year after the initial purchase of the book and will be sourced only from the publisher.
The new Visualisationable Text (TM) will prevent the wholesale piracy of books which is facilitated by manufacturers of photocopiers and that bastion of book piracy: families and friends.
This technology will fundamentally increase the revenue share of publishers, thereby insuring the continuation of book publishing.