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Old 08-23-2010, 12:35 AM   #1
cptbutton
 
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Default Harbinger of the Nanosocialist Menace!

"The key to economic growth: Stealing
In the 19th century Germany caught up with England by ignoring copyright. China in the 21st: Ditto"

A Salon article about developing countries and disregard for copyrights.

Quote:
The explanation for this tidbit may at first seem counterintuitive. In the first half of the 19th century, reports Der Spiegel, relying on the research of economic historian Eckhard Hoffner, Germany paid little attention to copyright law, in sharp contrast to Great Britain. The result, argues Hoffner, was a tremendous increase in the amount of published materials, particularly regarding scientific and technical knowledge, made available to the German public. Less regard for intelletectual property translated into a bigger market for producers of content.
Further down it talks about implications for China and the Internet Age.
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Old 08-23-2010, 10:47 AM   #2
Jürgen Hubert
 
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Default Re: Harbinger of the Nanosocialist Menace!

Nothing new, really - in fact, the "Made in Germany" label was introduced due to demands for it by the British government, who wanted those inferior, shoddy German goods be labeled for what they are to distinguish them from British quality manufacture. In the long run, this tactic seems to have backfired...


More to the point for Transhuman Space, this article seems to imply that nations will be more willing to adhere to international copyright and intellectual property laws as they catch up economically. This might or might not be true for Transhuman Space - but perversely, the opposition of the rest of the world to infosocialism and nanosocialism might prevent that, as the TSA nations become stuck in an "us versus them" mentality and stick to their ideology even as they become more prosperous. It wouldn't be the first time that powerful nations inadvertently create their own enemies, and the setting of Transhuman Space certainly has more room for historic ironies...
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