Book Review: The Future of Reputation

In less than 24 hours I have plowed through Daniel Solove's "The Future of Reputation." Solove is a leading expert on privacy law and his erudition is clear as he weaves a comprehensive tale of the Internet's effect on gossip, rumor, privacy and reputation.

Solove's writing is highly readable and anecdotal as he explains why age-old concepts like gossiping and shamming have become permanently etched into digital memory. After establishing the various types of activity which is coming to affect reputation in the 21st Century, Solove argues for a more nuanced understanding of privacy. He notes that public acts may be done without the expectation of permanence, yet in a world of camera-phones, people do not often have a choice. Further, although free speech and privacy may seem to be at odds, he shows that they may act to further the same goals (think anonymous political publications).

In all, I think Solove does a great job raising a warning in an accessible book which presumes no previous knowledge. Though I would have liked a discussion of how government surveillance fits into this, Solove chose to write about reputation and the public norms which underlay that. Perhaps that is just as important in the global village.

Book Review: The Big Switch

Next month, Nick Carr’s new book, The Big Switch will be published in which he compares the centralization of electricity production to the current “cloud computing” phenomenon. Carr is one of my favorite voices in the technology field and he was kind enough to send me an advance copy of his book.

In a way which few do well, Carr uses history to understand the ramifications of important trends in today’s world. As more and more information technology is moved from one’s individual PC or firm to large server farms run by companies like Google, Amazon or Salesforce, Carr believes we will see profound changes in media, privacy, and more: even our biology may be affected.

This change to software as a service is, Carr explains, largely analogous to the big switch of one hundred years ago when electricity became a centralized commodity. During much of the Industrial Revolution large factories had to make the energy necessary for running the tools of production. To this end, factories were built near large rivers or other sources of energy.

However, the work of Thomas Edison and his protege Samuel Insull made electricity production an industry unto itself which would come to benefit from economies of scale. Commonwealth Edison and other energy companies made it possible for factories to be located anywhere and new inventions to proliferate in the homes of middle-class America. To Carr, this was a monumental occurrence which is on par with today’s shift toward Internet services.

The trend he analyzes is still developing rapidly with Amazon’s Web Services and Google’s products evolving weekly. Yet, Carr does a good job regarding the ramifications of this trend. He discusses privacy in a Web 2.0 world, media’s unbundling, threats to this progress and even provides a provocative look at where this may take us.

It is rare to come across a book which is as approachable, lucid and important as The Big Switch and I highly recommend ordering it.

Release it Free and Reap the Rewards

Eric von Hippel is an MIT professor and author of two books on innovation (Sources of Innovation and Democratizing Innovation). Unlike most authors, he releases his books for free downloads. In an interview he provides evidence to support that of Cory Doctorow - releasing material for free increases sales.

There have been 12,700 downloads of Sources of Innovation since I put it on the web last year, running about 20 per day. Sales before posting in 2005 (the book was published in 1988) were about 325 per year. In the year after posting, they were about 575.

Democratizing Innovation has been downloaded 55,000 times so far, with downloads from my MIT website running about 50 per day. I don’t think this has hurt hard copy sales – and it actually may have helped. MIT Press told me that hardcopy sales are higher than their pre-pub estimate of what they would have been without the option of free downloads.

Here are the links to the downloadable copies of his books - Sources and Democratizing.

I hope to interview some people who have had similar experiences in the future and get their anecdotes and views on the changing industry of publishing.

Google's Legal Battles

The recent news that Viacom has sued Google puts two major legal battles in the hands of Google's legal department. Let's take a look at them:

Google Book Search Suit

Google is currently scanning millions of volumes at the major libraries of the world. The books they have scanned are being made available for search. They are scanning books with three legal statuses:

1. Public Domain Works
These books have no restrictions as to how they can be reproduced. In fact, many, including Microsoft, Yahoo, Project Gutenberg and the Internet Archive, are in the process of making public domain books available online.

2. Copyrighted and Out-of-Print Works
For these books which are no longer available and often do not have a readily findable copyright owner, Google is providing snippet search results. That is, you can see the term for which you searched and a few lines of context. The Authors Guild and publishers who are suing Google still object because they are afraid of the future. Oh, I mean, they object because Google is still copying the entire book even if they are only showing a fair use portion.

3. Copyrighted & In-Print Works
Google is displaying these works as either card catalogue entries or through snippet access.

The suit is most likely just a business negotiation which happens to take place in the court room (sad, I know), but what does the law say?

Google is copying massive amounts of copyrighted material. The scale of this project is like nothing in the history of mankind. However, for copyrighted works, they argue that they are only providing fair uses of the material. The case really rests on whether or not the court finds that the initial act of copying is transformative enough to constitute fair use itself.

Google will argue that because the copied material does not affect the marketability of the books until it is displayed, the initial copying satisfies that requirement of fair use. Secondly, the ability to search through millions of books and find information like never before adds a value that books previously did not have. Further, Google is experimenting with mapping the locations mentioned in a book and linking books together which further transforms it to a different product than just a plain old book.

It is worth mentioning that if the case does go to trial and Google loses, the entire web search business (and thus the utility of the Internet) would drastically decline. In order to provide Internet search, Google creates a copy of every web page (which are copyrighted) and then provides snippet access to those. While publishers might argue that it is different because Google links to the original works, using Google Book Search will show that they provide numerous links to purchase the physical book at different sites.

Viacom v. GooTube

The future of Internet video hinges on this case which, in my opinion, stands a better chance of going to court. Viacom, one of the major content production companies, has sued Google-owned YouTube for copyright infringement. This case is more dependent on statutory law than the previous which will rely on legal precedent.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act provides Internet Service Providers a "safe harbor" where they cannot be sued are they to comply with a written request to remove a users copyright-infringing material. This section of the law was a compromise between the telcos, who recognized they could not monitor what their customers used the Internet for, and the content industry, who wanted an easy way to remove what they thought was infringing material.

In practice, this law has applied to both ISPs and websites which host user submitted material. For example, in February, Viacom sent YouTube 100,000 notices of infringing material which was subsequently removed by YouTube. Much of this material was Daily Show clips or South Park shorts. Although forward looking business people recognize the value of this exposure, Viacom apparently feels that it can do better without introducing people to their shows on the most popular video site in the world.

Viacom argues that YouTube has a duty to remove infringing material. According to them, because YouTube scans for and removes pornography they should be able to remove infringing material, too. In fact, it has been reported that Google was willing to remove infringing material for those who would agree to provide their material officially for the service.

However, the DMCA clearly places the burden on the copyright holder to police his works and provide notice of its infringement. Statutory law is in favor of YouTube.

Case law, on the other hand, might not be. The Grokster Supreme Court decision created a new test for technological innovation. Under the ruling which found Grokster liable, a technology and its provider may be liable if the technology "induces" copyright infringement. The prevalence of copyrighted works on YouTube would seem to suggest that consumers use the service for sharing copyrighted works, but bear in mind that YouTube has a strict terms of use, limits length to 10 minutes and readily complies with DMCA take-down notices. Lessig calls the Grokster test a monster and it will certainly rear its head in court.

In general, I am less worried about this case than the book case because of the implications. The Book Search case has the possibility of shutting down one of the greatest knowledge aggregations in history. The unification of centuries old information with digital technologies opens up astounding possibilities for future scholars. As for YouTube, even though Viacom may succeed and Google may have to pay $1 billion, it will survive and Internet video will continue as Viacom provides official versions elsewhere.

I'll be sure to update you on these cases as they develop both here and on my link blog.

Microsoft vs. Google - A Fight for Content

Microsoft attorney Tom Rubin spoke to the American Associate of Publishers today and lambasted Google's approach to copyright and content search. I come down heavily on the side of honesty, forward-thinking and transparency in this debate. Instead of adding more saturation to the blogosphere's echochamber, I want to point you to two good posts on the subject:

1. Tim O'Reilly, publisher and Web icon, clearly states what he has for a while - search is an essential evolution of traditional publishing and does not pose a unwarranted threat to the AAP.
   
2. Google watcher Danny Sullivan of Search Engine Land picks apart Rubin's claims one by one. It makes you wonder if Rubin knew how dishonest his PR move was.
   

I Think Some Lawyer Was a Little Excited...

And for a supplement to my recent post, below is the lengthy notice in the copy of Hedda Gabler I have [with my comments bracketed]. Some lawyer went a little overboard. To be clear, this is an adaptation of a public domain play:

"All rights reserved [Except fair use, right?]. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means [oops], including information storage and retrieval systems [tricked ya, Google!], without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review [wouldn't want to anger them]. Any members of educational institutions wishing to photocopy part or all of the work for classroom use, or publishers who would like to obtain permission to include the work in an anthology, should send their inquiries to Grove/Atlantic, Inc., 841 Broadway, New York, NY 10003. [We like to remain backwards in all regards, so no email address will be provided]

CAUTION: Professionals or amateurs [everyone?] are hereby warned that Hedda Gabler, as adapted by Jon Robin Baitz, is subject to a royalty ["warned", indeed]. It is fully protected under the copyright laws of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and all British Commonwealth countries [shucks, there goes my South African production]; in all countries covered by the International Copyright Union, the Pan-American Copyright Convention, the Universal Copyright Convention, and the Berne Convention; and in all countries with which the United States has reciprocal copyright relations ["the world" would have been shorter...]. All rights, including professional, amateur, motion picture, recitation, public reading, radio broadcasting, television, video or sound taping, all other forms of mechanical or electronic reproduction, such as information storage and retrieval systems and photocopying, and rights of translation into foreign languages, are strictly reserved [basically, don't think about doing anything but buying this play and filing it on your shelf. Opening it might prove illegal]. In its present form the play is dedicated to the reading public only [well, at least he dedicated it to us, not his parents or something].

By the way, I am writing to the address to see if they charge me to make copies for my "educational institution" (read: blog).

Links for 1/23/2007

Professor Boyle identifies for a wider audience what we already know: sharing makes you popular.

IBM, HP, and Intel form the Linux Foundation to promote the Windows alternative.

Sharing Makes You Popular

In the past, physical constraints made sharing difficult. Access to books in the Middle Ages was limited due to troubles associated with production and distribution. In an age where everyone can produce (as opposed to just monks) and distribution incurs a minimal cost, sharing has become the norm for many. Corporate entities, however, have shied away from such egalitarian methods. Conventional wisdom says profits come from perfect control. Instead, burgeoning artists (and some established entertainers) are finding that perfect market saturation trumps perfect control.

John Perry Barlow, who would go on to found the EFF, was a writer for the Grateful Dead during their heyday. According to JPB,

In regard to my own soft product, rock 'n' roll songs, there is no question that the band I write them for, the Grateful Dead, has increased its popularity enormously by giving them away. We have been letting people tape our concerts since the early seventies, but instead of reducing the demand for our product, we are now the largest concert draw in America, a fact that is at least in part attributable to the popularity generated by those tapes.

A similar tone is enumerated by Cory Doctorow, who writes for BoingBoing. The award winning science fiction writer simultaneously releases a free online version of his book under a Creative Commons license and a traditional paper copy for sale in book stores. According to Cory,

“I’m generating more sales of my printed books. Sure, giving away eBooks displaces the occasional sale, when a downloader reads the book and decides not to buy it. But it’s far more common for a reader to download the book, read some or all of it, and decide to buy the print edition."

So, go ahead. Do what your mom told you to: share.

My Christmas Book List

Democratizing Innovation by Eric von Hippel
- What happens when the ability to innovate becomes, in itself, innovative? Von Hippel, an MIT professor, addresses the burgeoning creative ability of the masses.


Code: Version 2.0 by Lawrence Lessig
-"Code is law." With that mantra, Lessig led readers to recognize the powerful ties between law and computers. The "wild west" imagined by some for cyberspace would come to be managed by litigious firms and DRM technologies. This is an update to his 1999 book.

Who Controls the Internet?: Illusions of a Borderless World by Jack Goldsmith and Tim Wu
-The incredible power of the Internet is more evident every day. With that potency comes important struggles for control including the net neutrality debate.

The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki
- James Surowiecki, a columnist for the New Yorker, argues that groups are, at times, remarkably more intelligent than individuals. In today's connected world, the crowds can be utilized. Case in point: Wikipedia

The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm by Tom Kelley
-IDEO is a fascinating company which does great work. Tom Kelley has written extensively about innovation.



Disclaimer: If you end up buying any of the above books from the links I provided, Amazon will compensate me some small percentage.

What's on your list?

"Stop Worrying About Copyrights"

That's the advice of Henry Jenkins, a co-director of MIT's comparative media studies program, in this article part of Forbes' 'Future of the Book' special report. The "dysfunctional families" of the publishing business need to focus on making there content available for all people in all formats, says Jenkins.

Exactly.

What matters is not perfect control, but perfect market saturation. In today's world where consumers are used to getting media in the form they like, let them have it.

By the way, Henry Jenkins is the author of Convergence Culture which I am currently reading. If you are interested in how citizens can be involved in big media creation, then check it out - there are some interesting anecdotes.

Copyright as a Wild West Metaphor

Boing Boing is pointing to a new book explaining copyright law through an extended metaphor of bounty hunters in the Wild West. As the author, Greg London, writes,

"This book introduces the metaphor of authors and inventors as Bounty Hunters. The public offers a bounty to any individual willing to create some as-yet-undiscovered work. Creators provide a "service" in the same vein as a Bounty Hunter provides a service of catching bad guys. Creators are rewarded for their service as a function of the labor put into it and the risk taken to be successful. The community sets the reward to be as low as possible but just high enough that a Bounty Hunter collects. Read about the metaphorical town of "Eureka" and see how the history of intellectual works fit within this metaphor."

Though I have yet to finish it, it is promising and unique so far. Buy the paperback here or read it online (under a CC Attribution License) here.