Sony CEO Proposes "Guardrails For the Internet"

[wraggster]

Micheal Lynton, the guy who said 'I'm a guy who doesn't see anything good having come from the Internet. Period.' has posted an editorial at the Huffington Post titled Guardrails for the Internet, in which he defends his comment, and suggests that just as the interstate system needs guardrails, so too does the information superhighway. The following is pretty indicative of the article: 'Internet users have become used to getting things when they want it and how they want it, and those of us in the entertainment business want to meet that kind of demand as efficiently and effectively as possible. But what has happened online is that if it is 'beyond store hours' and the shop is closed, a lot of people just smash the window and steal what they want. Freedom without restraint is chaos, and if we don't figure out some way to prevent online chaos, the quantity, quality and availability of the kinds of entertainment, literature, art and scholarship we need to have a healthy, vibrant culture will suffer.'

http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/05/26/1223224

[sorceror]

"Trying to make bits uncopyable is like trying to make water not wet. The sooner people accept this, and build business models that take this into account, the sooner people will start making money again." - Bruce Schneier

[Dunpeal1978]

Knowledge is power.And Politicians,Churches,and Corporations always benefit from this truth.Any short lived cyberspace freedom will soon be cut short.Soon enough it will become just like the past,when the rich were the only ones who could afford books.

[devdj]

Knowledge is power.And Politicians,Churches,and Corporations always benefit from this truth.Any short lived cyberspace freedom will soon be cut short.Soon enough it will become just like the past,when the rich were the only ones who could afford books.

Not on my watch they won't because i'll destroy them all

[Jeric]

Any attempt to do so will ultimately fail and make the people that try look out of step with society.

[kaferenza]

Freedom without restraint is true freedom, not this "You're free to do what we want you to be able to do but nothing else" watered down version of "freedom". Chaos is simply another word like "terrorism" meant to strike fear and unnecessary reaction out of the weak and uninformed.

[Justise]

It is true that there is a little "too much freedom" on the internet. But I don't think any "Guardrails" would work. If it wasn't for the internet, Anime releases would still be few, cencored and in bad quality.

[rabidchild]

Imagine if a computer corporation released software that locked what your computer can and can't do. Then, when individuals try to circumvent that, the corporation sues, threatens, and harasses until they get their way. They aren't talking about freedom with restraint, they are talking about freedom on their terms. I'm happy to pay for software that doesn't cripple the platform I own.

[Aryn]

So, let me get this straight, Micheal Lynton...

Apparently people are getting into piracy...a large part of that has to do with the fact that since SONY restricts what can be done with the PSP system people who would not otherwise pirate end up using hacked firmware versions that make piracy rediculously easy...

And the Internet keeps its freedoms intact because it is meant to be a medium that allows for free exchange of information by all parties...

..............And you feel that there should be restraints on the internet, thereby preventing free exchanges of data, all so SONY's profits can grow?

...And all disregarding that fact that people are enjoying PS1 games on their PSP systems (using custom firmware, of course, most are no longer copyrighted), purchasing used games, trading games, and using the PSP to do things besides play games.


Here's an idea: Instead of trying to restrict piracy, you should give incentives to not pirate. Perhaps include coupons for Playstation Store or limited edition collectible items with games? This will also affec used game sales and work in your favor.