Whose Copyright Economy

11.12.2009 www.kasvi.org 1

Whose

Immaterial Economy?

Jyrki J.J. Kasvi


Information society civilization

InformationprocessingPre-languageSpeechWritingPrinting pressICT technology

Availableinformation~ 107 bits~ 109 bits~ 1011 bits~ 1017 bits~ 1025 bits

Printing press gave birth to copyright as we know it: To protect content providers against distributors

ICT tehcnology is going to need a corresponding system: But to protect whom against whom?

CivilizationlevelPackTribes/villagesTowns/citiesIndustrial Networking


Anne’s act 1709

In 1709 the first actual copyright law was enacted in United Kingdom – Defined the three interest groups whose relationships copyright

laws still governs: content provider, publisher and consumer

– Publishers had no right to limit the way consumers use the content they purchase, DRM would have been illegal in 1709.

– It took 300 years from Gutenberg’s invention to get a law

The principles of Anne’s act worked for almost 300 years!– Requires small copying costs and centralised control

– In digital world the copying costs are zero and each and every computer is a potential printing press

– Now the change happens much faster than 300-400 years ago.


Challenge and opportunity

Printing press created the basis for copyright system1. Making of new copies of content is cheap2. It is possible to centrally supervise and control copying

Newspapers and popular culture were born as a result– But the profession of scribes was wiped out

Digital technology requires new rules1. It costs nothing to copy, edit and distribute content2. It is impossible to centrally supervise or control copying

What new cultural phenomena digital technology makes possible?

– Social media, crowdsourcing, …– Rip-n-mix & mash-up– ???


Goals for a new copyright system

Of these we probably have a wide consensus

1. To maximise production and use of content – the expansion of culture– E.g. the original goal of the patent system was to maximise the

distribution and use of new innovations – expansion of economy

2. To secure livelihood of content makers– What about benefits of media industry shareholders?– Production and marketing services used by content makers are

also under threat

3. To facilitate new forms of content, expression and culture– Crowdsourcing, mash-ups etc. vs. copyright

Of means to achieve these goals we still need to discuss


Problematic details

Copyrights of public information– Have been used to limit publication and usage of public information– How to use content created by public cultural institutions and broadcasting

companies? Copyrights in developing countries

– Research and education institutions of developing countries cannot afford the prices of scientific and educational materials

Disabled people’s equal access to information– Content should be transferable to formats accessible to disabled people– DRM should allow blind people’s screen readers to work

Copyrights of software have been forgotten– Economically the most important sector of copyright economy in Finland

The intimate relationship of media industry and law makers– The secrecy of ACTA negotiations have not stopped media industry

lobbyists from being informed (better than politicians or NGO’s)– Consumer and civil rights have been secondary to economic interests

11.12.2009 www.kasvi.org

Supervision and control

The only way to enforce traditional copyrights in digital age is to supervise continuously everybody’s digital communications– Privacy?– Who is responsible for supervision and judgement?

Cutting internet connections is the only working punishment – Freedom of expression?– Who is responsible for enforcing punishments?

Chinese proposal– Install supervision compulsory software on each and every

computer Who would be watching the watchmen?

11.12.2009 www.kasvi.org

Cloud computing politics

Applications, content and computing are becoming cloud computing services– Content providers must become service providers

Kindle etc. Is doing the same to books and newspapers as Spotify did to music– TV channels may die but IP television services grow

The tension between the rights of content providers, publishers and customers stays– Amazon removed 1984 from their clients’ Kindles

What is going to happen to public libraries?– Publishers would be more than happy to see libraries dwindle


Difficult near future

Media industry is going through a painful structural change– CD and DVD, even mp3 and mpeg are going to follow

LP and C to oblivion– Content becomes service

Amateur media challenges industrial media– Distributed and shared content production

Commercial news media are facing a challenge to survive– The role of public broadcasting and media increases


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Discussion

U.S. Army Photo

Technology

Whose Copyright Economy