One More Reason Why Copy Protection Isn't The Issue

from the people-don't-care dept

A recurring theme over the past month or so as many folks seem to be bringing back the "content is king" meme, is that all of these broadcast content creation companies are completely missing the point. On both the internet and on mobile phones, people are using them to communicate, not to passively consume content. The Guardian is now running an article from someone who just recognized this. He has a TV, so he doesn't really want more TV content via his internet connection. He wants to be able to communicate with friends and family -- which means creating his own content and sharing other content. This is the main reason why all of these attempts at copy protection and locking up content behind walls is misguided online. All it does is make the content that much less valuable, because it can't be discussed and it can't be shared. Trying to copy protect content is thinking about how to make the internet act more like a TV -- but we already have TVs. The internet and mobile phones are about communicating and user generated content. Copy protection doesn't help anyone communicate -- it just makes it more difficult.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.