Ponderance: Lawrence Lessig: "Free, the difference between code and culture"

Lawrence Lessig: "Free, the difference between code and culture"

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

After spending more than three weeks with no internet connectivity at all I'm back at work so that, during the day at least, I'm back online for 2007.

To start the year off, I'd like to recommend that anyone who cares about culture and creativity watches Lawrence Lessig's talk "Free, the difference between code and culture" which was delivered at 23C3. Until last month, Lessig has been at the helm of the Creative Commons organisation and has been the white knight of sensible copyright laws (which foster creativity rather than disabling it). His talk at 23C3 shows that this advocacy is as strong as ever. One comment transcribed by Thomas Roessler gives you some idea of what Lessig argues:

Barlow, from the floor: Civil disobedience will be important to break the current copyright system. Teenage geeks win the technical side of the war, and recording industry will lose battle for their hearts and minds.

Lessig: Don't doubt technical community's ability to crack DRM, but doubt their ability to deal with the politics that are created. Don't lose the opportunity to convince people why we are right. MGM vs. Grokster got thought about as "should people be allowed to steal," and was lost. If there's a perception that community doesn't take on the political side of the argument, but just wants free stuff, then it'll continue to lose.