>> Freeloading may increase total unfairness, but it still
>> increases wealth. Downloading always increases wealth.
I must confess that I haven't thought out the following notion in detail,
and don't understand enough about the Napster culture to guess if it would
work. Still--
Suppose I e-posted advertisements (somehow/somewhere) that my latest novel
can be downloaded free from one given server, and asked for a $1 or less
tip. Terrible idea: I need to pay for server space, and the inundation of
hits from my zillion eager fans will lock up the system and send them to
Piers Anthony paperbacks instead.
So what if, instead, I use a sort of benign pyramid scheme:
I send Eliezer, Spike and Robert an attached e-copy of the 85,000 word
novel apiece (after politely inviting and receiving their request for it).
Thereafter they can do what they wish with it, but I ask nicely that if
they enjoy the book they send me a buck (by whatever appropriate means,
maybe Paypal) AND THAT THEY SEND A TEASER TO ANOTHER THREE FRIENDS who they
judge might care to read it.
If those gullible marks in turn accept a download, out it goes--at modest
expense and effort to Eliezer, Spike and Robert, whose job is then done.
Then those cats in turn send me a buck (should they care to accept this
mission, and find the thing an enjoyable read), and so on in a snowball
that makes me rich within 20 iterations and gives many people an enjoyable
experience (I have to tell you, the new novel ENDLESS is a lot of fun).
Has this idea got legs?
Or is it very, very boring and/or already the basis of MPEGs anyway/etc?
Damien Broderick
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat May 11 2002 - 17:44:16 MDT