From: Technotranscendence (neptune@mars.superlink.net)
Date: Sat Dec 22 2001 - 20:48:40 MST
On Saturday, December 22, 2001 8:42 PM Samantha Atkins
samantha@objectent.com wrote:
>> I with you here. When I go to see a concert at Carnegie Hall or when
>> I
>> rent a car, I'm only taking a time-delimited ownership in,
>> respectively,
>> my seat at Carnegie (usually in the upper balcony where the cheap
>> seats
>> are) or the vehicle. Why can't the same apply to anything else? In
>
> The same should not apply to any something else that is
> fundamentally different as software is. Unlike the examples
> given of finite resources only useable by one party at a time,
> software and many forms of digital media are infinitely copyable
> and distributable without any dimunition in supply or
> availability. Also, software and many of the things the IP
That abbreviation is so dissonant for some of us!:)
> struggles are over actually arguably increase in value and in
> stimulus to continued creation of greater value the more open
> the model of distribution and ownership and associated rights
> is.
I'm not exactly saying they're equal, but I don't think we'll settle
this issue here. Note I did say, "Even a society with no conception of
intellectual property could still have these tools of trade." This kind
of opens the door to considering regimes without intellectual
property -- or ones with different kinds of intellectual property. The
latter I bring up because I've heard under India's drug patent law --
not sure if it's true or if it applies beyond drugs -- you can duplicate
a patented drug provided you don't use the same process. If this is so,
then the market dynamic must be a lot different there. Companies
probably look for ways to modify the process over finding new drugs
extending patents on old ones. (Extensions and the duration of
copyrights and patents are still another matter.)
It would be nice to have a sober discussion of it, though I'm not sure
what I could add to it.:) I'm also not sure where I stand on these
issues.
Happy Holidays!
Daniel Ust
http://uweb.superlink.net/neptune/
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