Am I the only person who gets bill shock just watching the carrier's commercials? Seriously, Maybe I'm just cheap, but I can't justify $100 (plus unmentioned regulatory and because-we-can fees) a month for two phones in an age when the costs of hardware and wholesale connectivity are plummeting. I think parents should be able to give their kids phones (for safety, checking in, etc.) without worrying about forgoing saving for college, let alone worrying about overages. Maybe paying engineers to lock and cripple good phones and then stuff their limited onboard storage with crapware is expensive. I just feel that complaining about overage fees while allowing them to gouge us on the rest of the bill is short sighted.
Tim O'Reilly famously said, "Create more value than you capture." I think the consensus is that big pharma is capturing more value than they create. Turning their corporate culture may be like turning an ocean liner, but that's what it will likely take to change the underlying problem.
Whether Wikileaks are the highest of journalists or the lowest of criminals, one thing is clear to me. A grave problem within the US government has come to light, that its leaders would attack the very underpinnings of democracy and freedom to accomplish a goal. This means is most definitely not justified by any end, no matter how noble. Now that this problem has been exposed, we can begin to seek out a solution that will protect our citizens and the world.
It's because our government has proven incompetent at these and so many other things. Would you let the guy who drops everything he touches hold your baby? I sortta doubt it.
Perhaps some day we will have trans-oceanic bullet trains. I realize that may sound unrealistic, but I never would have thought that they could make trans-oceanic communication cables either.
History has proven that free markets are a much more efficient and accurate gauge of innovation than patent examiners. Just look at the number of patents issued as compared to the number of businesses demonstrating innovation. Just because some patent examiner rubber stamps your form, doesn't mean you were innovative.
Eli Lilly could be part of a new TV show fashioned after Punk'd. It would portray large companies lured to failure by the sweet song of government granted monopolies much like ancient sailors shipwrecked by the call of sirens. The catch phrase would be, "You've been monopolied!" It might not catch on, but I would watch it.
Or, they could skip step 4 and just call it diversification. Being a patent troll is one way of strengthening profits when the banking industry goes soft.
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.
I have a suspicion that much of this is driven by lawyers giving self-serving advice to their clients. On the other hand, I'm sure it's at least half driven by the crazy culture of ownership we see in the IP world today.
Hello Analog Rights Management. Give them a cassette and when they make copies for their friends, those friends will have to come back to the concert to hear what you actually sound like.
Maybe I missed it, but didn't notice anyone pointing out that Costco never copied anything! There can be no violation of copyright without copying, whether it be mechanical, digital, performance or other means.
And I'm so used to Techdirt commenters ridiculing every one of Mike's posts like it was a sport that I was surprised to find positive and engaged readers.
To your point, however, I'm sure there's someone out there who can figure out how to abuse the system to suppress this research. Perhaps a bogus DMCA takedown or other claims of IP infringement?
It's all a moot point anyway because I can't sing or play an instrument. Ipso facto, there is no money to be made in the music business, so quit trying!
If they were thinking clearly enough, they probably wouldn't be patenting in the first place. Whether or not patents made any sense in the past, it is becoming increasingly clear that they are merely a drain on innovation in this modern era.
Okay, but double check your US Constitution as well. Congress only has the right to implement limited monopolies that promote "the useful arts and sciences." Any other monopoly is unconstitutional. Maybe he's giving our current copyrights too much credit. Those who side with your view that copyright is unconstitutional may appreciate http://questioncopyright.org/ .
On the post: Wireless Carriers Finally Cave On Overage Fees; Reluctantly Agree To Stop Treating Customers Like ATMs
Forget fees, the advertized pricing shocks me!
On the post: 'War' On Fake Drugs Really An Excuse To Boost Big Pharma; Putting The Poor At Risk
Create more value than you capture.
On the post: The US's Reaction To Wikileaks Is Doing A Lot More Harm Than The Leaks Themselves
My real take away from the Wikileaks story
On the post: The Fine Line Between Legitimate Think Tank And Industry Shills
Re:
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Re: Re: Re: Re:
On the post: Patents Create Incentives For More Patents, Not Innovation
Free markets verses patent examiners
On the post: Eli Lilly's Reliance On Patents May Be Its Downfall
Eli Lilly, you've been punk'd!
On the post: Paul McGuinness Thinks Recognizing Due Process Is Bad For Ireland's Reputation?
Translation
On the post: ACTA Negotiators Still Claiming Secrecy Is Needed; Turn Off WiFi At Briefing
Thankfully, there's 3G
On the post: BofA Patents A Way Of Denying Overdraft Fee Refunds
Diversification
On the post: Lessons In Smart Trademark Management: Free Licensing Of The Mark From Twitter
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.
On the post: Everyone Has Something To Hide: Why Privacy Is Important Even If 'You've Done Nothing Wrong'
Re: Re: Privilege
On the post: IBM Trying To Patent Cure For Obama's BlackBerry Woes
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On the post: Forget Vinyl, Now Cassette Tapes Are Making A Comeback?
Move Over DRM...
On the post: Libraries Worried About Potential Supreme Court Ruling Concerning Legality Of Selling Imported Omega Watches
Isn't the operative word COPY?
On the post: Even If You Know About The Gorilla, You Might Not Catch The Unexpected
Re: Where's the controversy?
To your point, however, I'm sure there's someone out there who can figure out how to abuse the system to suppress this research. Perhaps a bogus DMCA takedown or other claims of IP infringement?
On the post: If Your Music Business Model Is To Make Money On Live Shows, Make Those Live Shows Experiences To Remember
It's all a moot point anyway...
On the post: Should Those Sued In Bogus Patent Infringement Cases Be Able To Recover Legal Fees?
Re: Re: Re: Re: Misplaced liability
On the post: Should Those Sued In Bogus Patent Infringement Cases Be Able To Recover Legal Fees?
Re: Re: Re: Misplaced liability
On the post: Homeland Security Decides If It Just Keeps Interchanging Counterfeiting With Copyright Infringement, Perhaps No One Will Notice
Re: Category errors
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