Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.

Re: The Lie of "IP"

Author:Dennis Grant
Posted:8/31/2000; 11:58:58 AM
Topic:The Lie of "IP"
Msg #:20596 (In response to 20588)
Prev/Next:20595 / 20597

I went through and read all the (current) replies to my first post, and will summarize my responses here - the better to spare everyone the gaucherie of replying to each reply ;)

> Secondly, I know Diablo II is a first-rate product, & if I > support it Blizzard will keep the titles coming. I need to > support it if I want more.

This is a pretty good summation of how the "patron" model works for certain classes of software/bitstreams, especially games, but also music as well. Movies I see a little differently, as I'll explain in a bit.

When you buy a commercial game, or a CD, you're paying for two different things: firstly, convenience. The CD, the manual, the box to store it in, etc. etc. This is the "value add" of the publisher, and it's worth something, especially for complex games with maps, manuals etc. The second thing you're paying for is the "patronage" angle - "I like this, and I want more, so I'll contribute - because if I don't, the well will dry up"

This is why I bought Quake and Quake 2, because I wanted to reward ID for supporting Linux. :)

However, the middlemen in both the music and gaming industries don't see it that way. To them, all that matters is the physical media, and they will stop at NOTHING (it seems) to prevent one from removing the content from the media and doing with it as they wish - because they see a zero-sum game, where each CD copied is one less CD sold.

And when you consider how the music and game industries handle their business, that's no suprise. The middlemen have all the power, and they rape both the artist and the customer because they CAN.

If I were a Metallica, I would demand a very healthy up-front payment to even get me into a recording studio (this, incidently is how electronica and other "non-performance" artists get to make their money - it's a performance for the DAT recorder, instead of an audience) I might also demand a share of each CD sold. This on the understanding that the record company was going to sell millions of CDs, and so had a very good chance of recouping their investment. But that's not how it works. Read Courtney Love's Salon article, or visit Prince's web site, to see how the industry _really_ works.

The gaming industry functions the same way. It's broken.

As far as the movie industry goes, their industry has a lockdown on the primary distribution channel (which is a good thing in this case) that being the theatre. The whole point to the movies is the theatre experience; all the after-channel DVD sales are pure gravy (and could be handled the same way as CDs/music - pay the production company up front, instead of "loaning" them the money and expect them to "repay" the money out of the gross)

Finally, we have the for-sale software developer. For sufficiantly odd niches, the "patron" model may work just fine. But I maintain that for every program worth using (outside of games, which are special) there is a group of people willing to work on an open-source duplicate. Once that happens, the game is over, because they will very quickly overcome the closed source version in all metrics, by virtue of sheer resources available. No closed-source developer can compete with a sufficiently organized and motivated group of open-sourcers when it comes to "commodity" software.

Finally:

> Thirdly, if I were to download it, I would be STEALING!

How is something, freely given, stealing? If I buy Diablo, and provide you with a copy... those were MY bits. I paid for them, they're MINE. If I chose to give you a copy, they were mine to do so, and to label that as theft is Just Plain Wrong. It's Doublethink.

However, one might conclude then that by taking a copy and never purchasing one of of your own is being a poor patron - and that would be a correct conclusion. Without your patronage, there would be no Diablo 3. It is in your best intrests (assuming you like Diablo) to buy a "real" copy. But nobody has the right to say that I cannot give you a copy, and nobody should be calling you a thief for accepting it. If I cut my own hair, do I rob from my barber? If I grow my own vegetables, do I rob my grocer?

Thanks to everyone for not flaming.

DG

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