Net Views: The Internet as a copy machine

Net Views — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 04:49:02 -0800

"... When copies are super abundant, they become worthless.

When copies are super abundant, stuff which can't be copied becomes scarce and valuable.

When copies are free, you need to sell things which can not be copied.

Well, what can't be copied?

There are a number of qualities that can't be copied. Consider "trust." Trust cannot be copied. You can't purchase it. Trust must be earned, over time. It cannot be downloaded. Or faked. Or counterfeited (at least for long). If everything else is equal, you'll always prefer to deal with someone you can trust. So trust is an intangible that has increasing value in a copy saturated world. ..."

– Kevin Kelly, The Technium, Better Than Free

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Net Views: The Internet as a copy machine