>> Yes, I suspect there will be a zillion ways for clever people to make a
>> living (though maybe not a killing) as music makers while allowing free
>> distribution/re-use of the digital versions of their works.
>
>Jaron Lanier is working on something like this for music at musicisum.com,
>and I think it's based on the exact ideas we've been talking about
I looked over the website and it's a fresh and intelligent approach to
embracing the new "realities" of the music distribution system, and their
heads seem to be in a great space.
They don't deal with the issue of using each other's work in our own work,
freely, without having to ask, as long as those results are available to
everybody else in the same way. I think they're going to be real busy with
the challenge of inventing all these new "business models" that will have
to take form and evolve (because nobody can think through all the
implications of all these new relationships), and they won't be dealing
with the possibility of letting others re-use your "code".
I want to jump right into that, though -- re-using a common pool of source
material (MIDI files, pictures, graphics, lyrics) to see what that gives
birth to. I wouldn't be surprised if after everybody gets used to giving
and getting free digital copies of artists work, it might start to become
obvious that there's a fun domain to be occupied by people who don't want
to limit any re-use of their works ("open source artists"?).
A key technology might be making it very easy (almost automatic) to keep
track of who deserves credit for various sources that are re-worked or
woven together. Most artists would probably really prefer to have their
contribution credited, even if the credits aren't a big deal.
More thoughts!
Kevin
