Archive of UserLand's first discussion group, started October 5, 1998.
Re: Potlatch (was: Napster / Elvis)
Author: Jonathan Hendry Posted: 7/5/2000; 2:24:09 PM Topic: Napster / Elvis Msg #: 18338 (In response to 18335) Prev/Next: 18337 / 18339
I'm afraid I don't think Potlatch is a good metaphor for Napster. In potlatch, the incentive to give is that, if you don't, you'll look like a jerk in the community, which is probably small enough for this to matter. In fact, your kids might be dealing with it for a long time. "Oh, you're the son of that stingy guy. Does he still use the hunting knife I gave him?"There simply is no comparable incentive in the Napster model. Why *not* take lots and give nothing? Who's to know? What's the downside?
Also, giving MP3s carries little weight. In a potlatch culture, most any gift is going to represent some amount of care, effort, money or work. Especially if the potlatch culture doesn't exist in an era of mass produced consumer goods. There's not much effort involved in ripping a CD into MP3 format, and there's no real effort involved in sharing MP3's you downloaded from someone else.
Further, I suspect the people who are really giving are the artists, not the Napster users. Few Napster users will give back in the form of original music.
In a potlatch culture, is it acceptable for the gift you give to be the one you received last time? If you give me a toy boat this time, can I give it back to you next time?
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