I am really taken with the last point, “Giving (it away) is good”, and the implications for VCOs in thinking about the different things they do that are of value.
The writer Kevin Kelly recently picked up this theme on his blog
He highlights a similar question: how do people whose business model depends on intellectual property and resources thrive when so much of their value can be distributed for free through new technology?
Kelly argues,
When copies are super abundant, they become worthless. When copies are super abundant, stuff which can’t be copied becomes scarce and valuable
He outlines 8 features or qualities that are “better than free” because they have to be generated and cultivated and can’t just be copied. He suggests these are:
immediacy
personalisation
interpretation (paid for services that operate on free stuff)
authenticity (any hint of “realness” in the virtual world)
accessibility
embodiment
patronage (feel-good process of supporting the creators)
findability (the new version of distribution: drawing users’ attention)
Karl and I just finished running a session at the NCVO Publishers Forum conference based on this think-piece. Some very interested thoughts emerged about how publishing in the VCS has changed and how it will change in the next 5 years. I’ve captured those thoughts and posted the powerpoint slides over in the events forum.
Jake
I am really taken with the last point, “Giving (it away) is good”, and the implications for VCOs in thinking about the different things they do that are of value.
The writer Kevin Kelly recently picked up this theme on his blog
He highlights a similar question: how do people whose business model depends on intellectual property and resources thrive when so much of their value can be distributed for free through new technology?
Kelly argues,
When copies are super abundant, they become worthless. When copies are super abundant, stuff which can’t be copied becomes scarce and valuable
He outlines 8 features or qualities that are “better than free” because they have to be generated and cultivated and can’t just be copied. He suggests these are:
Megan
Third Sector ForesightKarl and I just finished running a session at the NCVO Publishers Forum conference based on this think-piece. Some very interested thoughts emerged about how publishing in the VCS has changed and how it will change in the next 5 years. I’ve captured those thoughts and posted the powerpoint slides over in the events forum.