[p2p-research] Fwd: [fcforum] Fw: iPad DRM is a dangerous step backward. Sign the petition!

Fri Jan 29 15:02:17 CET 2010

It is an interesting argument.  I certain I disagree with it.

I love my iPod Touch--it is the best technology I've ever used.  I add my
own media to it, but I've spent a lot on media that I already owned.  Truth
is, producers of content need a model for selling stuff.  iPod Touch saved
the music industry, and that isn't hyperbole.  That may not be great for
college kids who want free access to songs, but it has generated billions
for artists are jobs all over the world from Africa to Hollywood.  People
who don't believe in intellectual property had a bad day.  That's true.  To
my mind, P2P and the open movement have never been about doing away
with IP...in fact, just the opposite.  It is about free/open being a
competitive model where post-scarcity is more compelling both politically
and economically than market restrictions.

What is scary about the iPad (horrible name) is that it is so vastly
superior to any competition for a relatively low cost.  For 300 Euros, a
person can have a Kindle, great web browser, a media base that can hold all
sorts of stuff...(can external add on drives be far away?), and a superior
media machine that threatens TVs, music sources, etc.  It is remarkable that
one firm can produce technology so overwhelmingly superior to anyone else.
It isn't close.  This thing is a generation beyond Sony, Nokia, IBM, Dell,
etc.

When I first read about it, I shrugged and thought...it's just a big Touch.
But it is far more and for not much more money.  This even threatens the
OLPC movement.  It is highly disruptive...something I always think is
great.  It will probably save the publishing industry with the
Kindle...which is seems to destroy...you can get Kindle software for it for
free...  In the US upper and upper middle classes, the Kindle is now
everywhere...airports, etc. are full of them.  I know several college
students who are using it in literature studies and in other related
topics. The iPad disrupts all that.  It makes multimedia textbooks the new
standard.

It isn't a great day for the free/open movement, but it is a great day for
societies.  Sadly, many will not be able to see past their own view of
the politics of that statement.  Capitalism simply won again.  I think that
is a good thing.  If free/open wants to compete for the first place in
society, it needs to deliver top goods and services.  Here's to the guys who
can match Apple for 100 Euros and something I can tinker with, change and
add media that's either expensive or free.  I will never sign a
petition against massive technical improvements that are disruptive and
consumer friendly.  No one will buy it if it isn't consumer friendly.  I
understand they had millions of inquiries the first day.  If I can afford
one, I'll definitely put it on the wish list.

The other interesting fact is that this will push Google to go more toward
free/open.  Amazing that two companies that are less than 30 miles from each
other are essential reshaping the who user experience of computers.
Microsoft and Amazon are also 30 miles from each other.  One advantage
capitalism has over P2P is the clustering of human talent.  P2P will
inevitably move slower.  What is interesting about this thrust by Apple and
Amazon is whether it is disrupting free/open as a business model.  Maybe
this was the day P2P died.

Ryan

On 1/29/10, Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: <csdva at wowm.org>
> Date: Thu, Jan 28, 2010 at 3:51 PM
> Subject: [fcforum] Fw: iPad DRM is a dangerous step backward. Sign the
> petition!
> To: fcforum at list.fcforum.net
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
>
>
>
> Dear supporter,
>
> Today, Apple launched a computer that will never belong to its owner.
> Apple will use Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) to gain total veto
> power over the applications you use and the media you can view.
>
> We've launched a petition calling out Apple's new product for what it is:
> a frightening step backward for computing and for media distribution. Can
> you read it, sign it, and share with friends?
>
> http://defectivebydesign.org/ipad
>
> Also, when you've signed, please take the time to share the petition on
> sites like Identi.ca and Reddit:
>
> http://www.defectivebydesign.org/shareipad
>
> Defective by Design's John Sullivan is on the ground at the Apple event
> with a group of protesters, letting the public and journalists know about
> the "Restriction Zone" Apple is constructing around their products. We'll
> be posting images from the event throughout the day, so sign the petition
> and please check back frequently and help us circulate these images.
>
> http://defectivebydesign.org/ipad
>
> This summer we saw the dangers of DRM on ebook readers, when Amazon
> deleted hundreds of copies of George Orwell's 1984 from readers' computers
> while they slept. Applying this control to a general purpose computer
> marketed especially for media distribution is a huge step backward for
> computing, and a blow to the media revolution that happened when the web
> let bloggers reach millions without asking for permission.
>
> DRM and forced updates will give Apple and their corporate partners the
> power to disable features, restrict competition, censor news, and even
> delete books, videos, or news stories from users' computers while they
> sleep-- using the device's "always on" network connection.
>
> Apple can say they will not abuse this power, but their record of App
> Store rejections gives us no reason to trust them. The Apple Tablet's
> unprecedented use of DRM to control all capabilities of a general purpose
> computer is a dangerous step backward for computing and for media
> distribution; we demand that Apple remove DRM from the device.
>
> http://defectivebydesign.org/ipad
>
> Thank you for your support!
>
> Sincerely, Holmes Wilson, Matt Lee, Deborah Nicholson, Peter Brown and
> John Sullivan -- the DRM Elimination Team
>
> P.S. If you haven't already, register your Defective by Design account:
> http://defectivebydesign.org/user/register
>
> ------------------------------
>
>
>
>
> -----
> + info http://list.fcforum.net/wws/info/fcforum
> -------
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> Work: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhurakij_Pundit_University - Think
> thank: http://www.asianforesightinstitute.org/index.php/eng/The-AFI
>
> P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net
>
> Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss:
> http://listcultures.org/mailman/listinfo/p2presearch_listcultures.org
>
> Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens;
> http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens
>
>
>
>
>
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>

-- 
Ryan Lanham
rlanham1963 at gmail.com
Facebook: Ryan_Lanham
P.O. Box 633
Grand Cayman, KY1-1303
Cayman Islands
(345) 916-1712
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