The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom

Book Description

With the radical changes in information production that the Internet has introduced, we stand at an important moment of transition, says Yochai Benkler in this thought-provoking book. The phenomenon he describes as social production is reshaping markets, while at the same time offering new opportunities to enhance individual freedom, cultural diversity, political discourse, and justice. But these results are by no means inevitable: a systematic campaign to protect the entrenched industrial information economy of the last century threatens the promise of today’s emerging networked information environment.

In this comprehensive social theory of the Internet and the networked information economy, Benkler describes how patterns of information, knowledge, and cultural production are changing—and shows that the way information and knowledge are made available can either limit or enlarge the ways people can create and express themselves. He describes the range of legal and policy choices that confront us and maintains that there is much to be gained—or lost—by the decisions we make today.

Customer Reviews:

This Book Proves the Adage that You See What You Look For.......2007-07-08

I have been hearing about Yochai Benkler's book, "The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedoms," for some time and his exposition around what he (and many others) have called the "networked information economy." Benkler, a Yale law professor, also offers his 527 page (473 in text) book as a free PDF from his web site under a Creative Commons share alike license.

First, let me say, there are a couple of worthwhile insights in the book, which I'll get to in a moment. But mostly, I found the book overly long, often off-subject, and too political for my tastes. In fairness, some of this might be due to the fact it was written in 2005 (published in 2006) and the social and participatory aspects of the Web are now widely appreciated. Yet I fear the broader problem with this polemic is that it proves the adage that you see what you look for.

Benkler's argument is that cheap processors and the Internet have removed the physical constraints on effective information production. This is in keeping with the non-proprietary nature of information as a "nonrival" good, and is also leading to the democratization of information production and the emergence of large-scale peer-produced content. Benkler generally allies himself with the camp of technology optimists. His observations about trends and new developments from Ebay to Wikipedia to SETI@home and open source software are now commonly appreciated.

With the costs of information duplication and dissemination trending to zero, the limiting factor of production becomes human creativity and effort itself. But here, too, with hundreds of millions of Internet users, just a few hours of contributed content from each can easily swamp the ability of even the largest firms to compete. These trends to Benkler presage a "radical decentralization" of information production, and many other changes to the political economy and culture.

That radical changes in the nature of information production and authorship and even the role of traditional publishers or the media are underway is without question. Purposeful collaborations like Wikipedia are now clearly successful and were not forecasted by many.

The lens, however, in which Benkler looks at all of these trends is through the "modern" history of the mass media. Citing Paul Starr's "Creation of the Media," he notes how in 15 years from 1835 to 1850 the cost of setting up a mass-circulation paper increased from $10,000 to over $2 million (in 2005 dollars). In Benkler's view, these cost increases shifted the ability to publish away from the common citizen into the "problem" hands of the mass media. Fortunately, now with the Internet and cheap processors, this evil can be reversed. Though Benkler specifically disclaims that he is not describing "an exercise in pastoral utopianism," the fact is that is exactly what he is describing.

There can be no doubt that the role of mass media and traditional publishers is under severe challenge from the emergence of the Internet. It is also the case that we are witnessing citizen publishers and authors emerge by the millions. These changes are momentous, but they do not involve everyone -- only comparatively small percentages of Internet users blog and still smaller percentages contribute to Wikipedia (about 80,000 at present based on a user base of hundreds of millions). And, as the traditional gatekeepers of printers, publishers and editors lose prominence, new institutions and mechanisms for establishing the authoritativeness and trustworthiness of content will surely need to evolve.

These real trends deserve thoughtful exploration.

However, there is a reason that publishing costs increased so rapidly in that era of the 1800s. Mass publishing and pulp paper were emerging that acted to bring an increasing storehouse of content and information to the public at levels never before seen.

The explosion of information content that occurred at this very same time correlates well with the fundamental historical changes in human wealth and economic growth. Though mass media may prove to be an historical artifact, I would argue that its role in bringing literacy and information to the "masses" was generally an unalloyed good and the basis for an improvement in economic well being the likes of which had never been seen.

By taking a narrow historical horizon and then viewing it through the lens of the vilified "mass media," Benkler is both looking in the wrong direction and missing the point.

The information by which the means to produce and disseminate information itself is changing and growing. These changes in information infrastructure support an inexorable trend to more adaptability, more wealth and more participation. What we are seeing now with the Internet is but a natural continuation of that trend. The "mass media" and the costs of information production of the 1800s was a natural phase within this longer, historical trend. The multiplier effect of information itself will continue to empower and strengthen the individual, not in spite of mass media or any other ideologically based viewpoint but due to the freeing and adaptive benefits of information itself. Information is the natural antidote to entropy and, longer term, to the concentrations of wealth and power.

By trying to push the trends of the Internet through the false needle's eye of political economics, an effort that Benkler also erroneously makes with his earlier analysis of the growth of radio, what are in essence historical forces of almost informational or technological determinism are falsely presented as matters of political choice. Hogwash.

Benkler, however, does observe two useful dimensions for measuring social collaboration efforts: modularity and granularity. By modularity, Benkler means "a property of a project that describes the extent to which it can be broken down into smaller components, or modules, that can be independently produced before they are assembled into a whole." By granularity, Benkler means "the size of the modules, in terms of the time and effort that an individual must invest in producing them."

Benkler's insight is that "the number of people who can, in principle, participate in a project is therefore inversely related to the size of the smallest scale contribution necessary to produce a usable module. The granularity of the modules therefore sets the smallest possible individual investment necessary to participate in a project. If this investment is sufficiently low, then incentives" for producing that component of a modular project can be of trivial magnitude. Most importantly for our purposes of understanding the rising role of nonmarket production, the time can be drawn from the excess time we normally dedicate to having fun and participating in social interactions."

To illustrate this effect of granularity, he contrasts Wikipedia with its simple entries and editing and bounded topics with the far-less successful Wikibooks, which has much larger granularity.

Creators of social collaboration sites are advised to keep granularity small to encourage broader contributions, and if the nature of the site is complex, to increase the number of its modules. Of course, none of this guarantees the magic or timing that also lie behind the most successful sites!

I think that Benkler's arguments could have been more effectively distilled into a 30-page article, with much of the political economy claptrap thrown out. The book is definitely worth a skim.

Phenomenal Book on Information Science and Peer Production.......2007-05-12

I first became familiar with Benkler after reading his paper, "Coase's Penguin" in undergraduate study. I was delighted to hear of the publication of this book. Benkler continues beautifully where he left off in his previous papers and synthesizes an excellent theory of social production in his book.

Benkler begins by describing the economic shape of information - it's non-rival and builds upon itself. He explains the challenges that face information, particularly the Babel Objection. Benkler also covers some legal background on aspects of a "liberal society", such as the role of commons versus private property.

From there, he makes his way into peer production. He touches different aspects of this type of production, from open source to distributed content production & filtering (click workers) to the results of the FCC's shift towards commons-based wireless policy. I found chapter 4, where he connects social production to the economic concepts discussed earlier, to be the most interesting chapter of the book.

He moves on to a lengthy discussion of the political effects of network distribution and social production, including a summary of the history of mass media and predictions about the future. From there, he lays down his argument that we ought to continue to encourage open networks and information sharing. He presents a discussion on current legislation and legal challenges to information and provides some examples of solutions.

I read this book coming out of an undergraduate program in Information Science and wished I had read this book perhaps my sophomore or junior year. Benkler essentially lays out, in linear form, the precise message that my professors were teaching. Because of networks, information science in the 21st century will not follow the traditional industrial-style of distribution but rather a distributed and non-proprietary model. Its impact is phenomenal, not only in the realm of economics and science but politics, culture, and interpersonal communication.

This book ought to be required reading for every undergraduate student studying Telecommunications, Media, or Information Science.

Good argumentation.......2007-04-28

I agree when some people say the book is not well edited (even not being english my first language I found some errors within it) but I think the greatest think about it is the attempt to explain something that it is easy to see that is happening today but nobody know why is happening. You know people write in Wikipedia and that most of them do that at their free time, you know that some people participate in great collaborative efforts to develop free software in the Internet, you know people keep blogs to express their point of view. But can you explain why that happens, why do they do that expecting no financial return or acknowledgment? What do they want? Perhaps you may know what you want when you do or don't some of that things but what about the rest of the world, if you care about it? What has changed or is changing or still must be changed in the societies so that happens?
The author doesn't explain it too but he tries to do it, it is an initial attempt to get some answers. His argumentation through the book covers many aspects of our lives, economic, political, social, antropological, legal and I think that at least at the end you will have some new insights on what is all that about.

Connectivization.......2007-04-20

Be forewarned that this brilliantly conceived book is not so brilliantly written, and the reading can be a real slog at times. Yochai Benkler is a perceptive social theorist but his thoughts are bogged down in academic writing that could really use some editing. Expect excessive introducing, foreshadowing, recapping, and summarizing, giving you the often tiresome impression that you will read Benkler's prose again or have read it before. This book also suffers from what business strategists and military tacticians would call "scope creep," as Benkler's broad theories on society and knowledge become so all-inclusive as to border on diffuseness and ineffectiveness - a problem that really slows down the middle section of the book. This is a common difficulty for vast unified theories about information and humanity, so prepare for some difficulty in following the main points that Benkler is trying to make.

But now that those warnings are out of the way, beneath Benkler's ponderous prose are insightful theories about the rise of networked culture, inspired by the digital revolution, in the face of lockdowns from entrenched power players. The initial uses of open networks inspired a megalomaniacal reaction from the industrial and political sectors, which have partially succeeded in forcing technological design changes, and persecution of new cultural behaviors, that threatened their economic and political dominance. For instance, intellectual property laws (patents, trademarks, and copyrights), which were originally meant to encourage cultural production, have been transformed by power players into tools to enforce corporate profitability. And if you think concerns over those trends are merely alarmism, Benkler provides profound evidence that damage really is being done to culture, freedom, and democracy - in ways that are far deeper and more troubling than the (corporate-inspired) popular rhetoric around piracy, rolyalties, and hackers.

Benkler informatively differentiates the types of freedom that are at stake - personal, cultural, social, and political - and ably demonstrates how each are affected by trends in infrastructure development, media behavior, corporate profiteering, and political gamesmanship. One especially winning chapter deals with how the rising network society can promote justice and development in third world areas that are not currently connected and may never be. The corporate and political insistence on regulating the information infrastructure and criminalizing user behaviors may represent a losing battle against the basic human drive to network and create, as can be seen in trends like open source software and community wi-fi. Benkler's main point here (when you're finally able to uncover it) is that humanity may be on the brink of a major change in the way we process culture and information, thanks to the growth in open worldwide networks. The old school power players won't go without a fight, adding unnecessary strife to the process, but Benkler has faith in humanity's ability to transform and rise above [~doomsdayer520~]

Excellent and Insightful Articulation.......2007-01-11

I highly recommend reading Yochai Benkler's book.

It is a balanced articulation of what the Internet and Web 2.0 are enabling in the development of new forms of social collaboration that are not adequately recognized as such by both private/regulated market advocates and welfare advocates. One of the things that struck me most is Benkler's capacity to create a perspective in which he can show that these new forms of collectives are rooted in old practices that have existed forever.

He also shows that these practices can gain major significance if:

1. The neutrality of the web, access to the web, Open Source initiatives, and the General Public Licensing type of legislation are improved,
2. The aggressive move toward Intellectual Property laws and regulations, and control by corporations, is counter-balanced.

Excellent read!

The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom.(Book review): An article from: Yale Law Journal

Average customer rating:

The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom.(Book review): An article from: Yale Law Journal
Lior Jacob Strahilevitz
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B000SQJ5FW
Release Date: 2007-06-27

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Yale Law Journal, published by Thomson Gale on May 1, 2007. The length of the article is 19378 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom.(Book review)
Author: Lior Jacob Strahilevitz
Publication: Yale Law Journal (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 116 Issue: 7 Page: 1472(45)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Roy Smith shows how the bases of banking competitiveness are changing, from the size of assets and profitable systems protected by regulation to market know-how, innovation, and technology. He reviews the U.S., European, and Japanese financial systems, and provides insights into their futures. European banks, he demonstrates, are in the early stages of a free-market renaissance for which many are ill-prepared. For the powerful German banks, events in Eastern Europe and eastern Germany will be a continuing distraction. Japanese banks and brokers, weakened by losses and scandal, have passed their peaks as superpowers. They now face major regulatory changes that will disrupt their once safe and profitable franchises. Smith foresees a revival in the competitive position of U.S. banking and finance. He shows how U.S. banking will split into two distinct parts: large, technologically advanced retail companies and market-oriented investment bankers and wholesalers.

Comeback: The Restoration of American Banking Power in the New World Economy

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Comeback: The Restoration of American Banking Power in the New World Economy
Harvard Business Review , and Harvard Business School Press
Manufacturer: Harvard Business School Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0071035966

Book Description

In Comeback, Smith reveals the past and present of U.S., European, and Japanese banking, asserting that European and Japanese financial systems are ill-prepared for the future while U.S. banking will succeed by splitting into two distinct parts-large, technologically advanced retail companies and market- oriented investment bankers and wholesalers. "The section on Japan is one of the best descriptions of the Japanese economic and financial scene that I have read."-William Hayes, Business Book Shelf

Average customer rating:

Good elementary introduction to Buddhism--3.5 stars

Finally, a direct and cogent introduction of the essence of Tibetan Buddhism

Very good, but some shortcomings

Basic and informative

10 stars if possible....

Tibetan Buddhism From the Ground Up: A Practical Approach for Modern Life
B. Alan Wallace , and Steven Wilhelm
Manufacturer: Wisdom Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Tibetan | Buddhism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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Book Description

Here at last is an organized overview of Tibetan Buddhism's teachings, beginning with the basic themes of the sutras — the general discourses of the Buddha — and continuing through the esoteric concepts and advanced practices of Tantra. Unlike other introductions to Tibetan Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism from the Ground Up doesn't stop with theory and history, but relates timeless spiritual principles to the pressing issues of modern life, both in terms of daily experience and a uniquely Western world view. This fascinating, highly readable book asks neither unquestioning faith nor blind obedience to abstract concepts or religious beliefs. Rather, it challenges the reader to question and investigate life's issues on a personal level, in the light of an ancient and effective approach to the sufferings and joys of the human condition.

Customer Reviews:

Good elementary introduction to Buddhism--3.5 stars.......2006-12-23

This is an edited version of a lecture series in Seattle in 1988, ordered from basic to "more subtle & advanced" based on the author-monk's 18 years study in all 4 schools + Pali texts. It is intended as a "guide to practice" esp. for those w/o Buddhist background. I found it simple, straight-forward, & easy to understand. As a short book it cannot bring much breadth to its vast subject, is simplistic at times (e.g. inadequately addressing self), & explanatory/descriptive vs. analytical/critical. Thus, the scientific, skeptical, western perspective is minimal, greatly reducing the potential value of a western Buddhist insider's viewpoint. Further, the author seems naïve--e.g. p. 134: "We are born with a natural, unlearned sense of intrinsic self." Psychologists have shown that self-consciousness is developmental not inbred--only the potential is inbred (similar to Buddha nature). Similarly, he says p. 134: "The workers, acting together, manage themselves." I suggest they'd need management ability, skills & training (e.g. most startup businesses fail)--see Elliott Jaques' "Executive Leadership" & "Human Capability." But he also makes some fine observations: p. 176: "If one were a bee, for instance, one's perception of this page would be very different than it is for a human. Similarly, it would look uniquely different to a bat, an owl, or a snake, p. 180: As the renowned physicist Werner Heisenberg said, `What we observe is not nature itself but nature exposed to our method of questioning,' & p. 181: We reify an object by removing it from its context, by ignoring the subjective influences of perception & conception." He also provides a good exercise--visualizing bubbles rising & bursting (p. 114) which was new for me. All in all it's a pretty good elementary introduction to Buddhism IMHO, but I much prefer Thubten Chodron ("Open Heart, Clear Mind" & "Buddhism for Beginners"), Pema Chodron, & Surya Das. These authors provide more depth, breadth, & practical value than this book IMO.

Finally, a direct and cogent introduction of the essence of Tibetan Buddhism.......2006-11-01

One has to appreciate the fact that many books taking on this task that was given in this short, under 200 pages are as introductions anywhere from 450 to 650 pages. If one wants more detail check out John Powers', Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism which runs, as an introduction, some 470 pages. For one who is looking for the essence of this practice without too much dedication of time, this is the book. You will come away with a very good idea of what this type of buddhism is and why it is important.

Very good, but some shortcomings.......2006-06-22

B. Allan Wallace has extremely impressive credentials. He was ordained by the Dali Lama, earned an undergraduate degree in Physics and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. Therefore, he is well qualified from an exposure to the concepts point of view.

My experience reading this book, however, was mixed. While the author has impressive credentials, his material is easily accessible and he make it relevant to Western people, he often left me wanting more of an explanation or more detail.

In an attempt to make the concept of Tibetan Buddhism accessible, I found that Mr. Wallace often over simplified his explanations. He appeals to common sense, but I found this book lacked the depth I was looking for given an author with such an impressive background.

Basic and informative.......2006-03-07

My teacher suggested this book for anyone new to Tibetan Buddhism. It's well-written and has basic information for some of the most popular questions a new person might have. It's a good "starting point" as well as a good text for anyone wanting to expand their knowledge of various paths of life.

10 stars if possible...........2006-02-07

This is by far the best explanatory book on Tibetan Buddhism I've read. It should be a Must Read for everyone interested in this fascinating philosophy and life style. Although targeted for beginners mostly, it is a thorough book for us in the western cultures. Easy to read and thought provoking. This books deserves a ten star rating and a special mantra. Buy it! Another recommended book is Open Heart, Clear Mind by Thubten Chodron.

China, on the Ground (A real-life context for business decisions)

Average customer rating:

China, on the Ground (A real-life context for business decisions)
Ellen, G Wallace
Manufacturer: Zidao Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | International | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

China, on the Ground is a seasoned reporter's personal notes on China today, in seven cities in one month (July 2005), compared to the country as she saw it 19 years earlier. It is an open letter to other travellers, primarily business people, who want a deeper understanding of the country than guidebooks offer, but who don't have the time or interest at the moment for treatises on the subject. Ellen Wallace uses a light touch to compare China's shift to a market economy country, viewed from the ground today, to the barrage of reports in the press. Most of these take the measure of China as it flies at high speed into the future, without pausing long to observe the Chinese as they move about their daily lives. In 1985 Paris-based American journalist Ellen Wallace and her Swiss-based British companion Nicholas Bates, an economics teacher with a special interest in developing economies, spent 10 weeks crossing China, together but without guides, on bicycles. The country had officially welcomed foreign travellers for only a short time and few tourists ventured beyond the major cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong. A bureaucratic oversight made it possible for the pair to travel through areas closed to tourists, where foreigners had not been seen in many years, if ever. But the China of the future belongs to a new generation. In January 2004 Liam Bates, age 16, British, American and soon-to-be Swiss citizen, decided that he wanted to study Chinese in order to better learn wushu, often known (and misunderstood) in the West under the name "kung fu". This was despite, and not because of, his parents' trip to the fabled Middle Kingdom during the dark era before his birth. He spent hours scouring the Internet, signed up for Chinese classes, made and sold web sites to earn money for the trip, until it was clear that this was not a moment's impulse. The Bates-Wallace couple's extended return trip to China was their third visit: a brief second trip to Shanghai and Beijing for an education conference in 2001 had softened the shock of seeing the country transformed. It also reminded them how different a traveller's observations are when a country is seen as the backdrop to a business trip, from the comfort of a good hotel and with meals in restaurants for foreign tourists. They travelled by plane and bus in 2004. Bicycles and their riders were becoming endangered species. The number of areas closed to foreigners had dwindled to the point where most other foreign tourists were unaware that China ever had a restrictive travel policy. To keep this intentionally short book tightly focused, the author chose to write about urban, rather than rural, China. She left aside the complex political issues that are central to the country's development and its relationships with other nations. She has left to others, for now, the postcards home that explain the historical and cultural significance of the sites seen on most tours of China.

Download Description

China, on the Ground is a seasoned reporter's personal notes on China today, in seven cities in one month (July), compared to the country as she saw it 19 years earlier. Special features: 75 pages of text; 100 color photos that capture the changes; background and 91 links to web articles that provide a well-researched blend of the humorous and the serious, the entertaining and the informative. The publisher offers readers, with proof of purchase, a printer-friendly version, in black and white and without photos, designed to appeal to travellers in particular. Additional offer: monthly updates and additions to web links. Ellen Wallace uses a light touch to compare China's shift to a market economy country, viewed from the ground today, to the barrage of reports in the press. Most of these take the measure of China as it flies at high speed into the future, without pausing long to observe the Chinese as they move about their daily lives. In 1985 Paris-based American journalist Ellen Wallace and her Swiss-based British companion Nicholas Bates, an economics teacher with a special interest in developing economies, spent 10 weeks crossing China, together but without guides, on bicycles. The country had officially welcomed foreign travellers for only a short time and few tourists ventured beyond the major cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong. A bureaucratic oversight made it possible for the pair to travel through areas closed to tourists, where foreigners had not been seen in many years, if ever. But the China of the future belongs to a new generation. In January 2004 Liam Bates, age 16, British, American and soon-to-be Swiss citizen, decided that he wanted to study Chinese in order to better learn wushu, often known (and misunderstood) in the West under the name "kung fu". This was despite, and not because of, his parents' trip to the fabled Middle Kingdom during the dark era before his birth. He spent hours scouring the Internet, signed up for Chinese classes, made and sold web sites to earn money for the trip, until it was clear that this was not a moment's impulse. The Bates-Wallace couple's extended return trip to China was their third visit: a brief second trip to Shanghai and Beijing for an education conference in 2001 had softened the shock of seeing the country transformed. It also reminded them how different a traveller's observations are when a country is seen as the backdrop to a business trip, from the comfort of a good hotel and with meals in restaurants for foreign tourists. They travelled by plane and bus in 2004. Bicycles and their riders were becoming endangered species. The number of areas closed to foreigners had dwindled to the point where most other foreign tourists were unaware that China ever had a restrictive travel policy. To keep this intentionally short book tightly focused, the author chose to write about urban, rather than rural, China. She left aside the complex political issues that are central to the country's development and its relationships with other nations. She has left to others, for now, the postcards home that explain the historical and cultural significance of the sites seen on most tours of China.

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Killer was too obvious
Suspenseful, fast-paced mystery!

DEADLY GROUNDS
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Manufacturer: Zebra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Psychological & Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0821726536

Customer Reviews:

Killer was too obvious.......2000-07-30

Good book for teens. The killer was not who I wanted it to be, it should have been the woman (that's it for my spoiler). To many single men in the book involved with Sydney.

Suspenseful, fast-paced mystery!.......1998-04-09

"Deadly Grounds" is part of a series of novels about Sydney Bryant, private eye. Sydney is a most believable and likable detective.

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