Re: copyright under stress

On Wed, Jun 21, 2000, Eric Eldred <eldred[_at_]eldritchpress.org> wrote:
>
> <snip>
> I don't know if this experience is useful in determining what business
> model will succeed when distributing other digital media over the
> Internet. But wise businesspeople ought to experiment (as Courtney
> Love and Michael Ovitz are doing) and not rely on encryption and
> locks --

Why should they not also experiment with encryption and locks? My impression is that in most fields, enlightened copyright owners are experimenting with a range of different business models, from the wide open to the firmly locked. (The less enlightened are hoping that the internet is all a bad dream from which they will soon wake up)

It is very unlikely that there will ever be a universal business model suitable for all digital content -- just as there isn't one for printed content: we have free newspapers with paid-for advertising, and paid-for newspapers with free advertising; free journals sent to named individuals and very high-priced journals which only the libraries of wealthy institutions can afford. There will be a similar diversity in the digital environment, but I think that its competitive nature will help to reduce prices overall.

Edward Barrow
edward[_at_]plato32.demon.co.uk Received on Fri Jun 23 2000 - 07:47:28 GMT