What's Better Than Free?

Kevin Kelly, in his great Better Than Free article, talks about eight "generatives" that yield value in a world of endless free copies. These generatives include

"Embodiment -- ... And nothing gets embodied as much as music in a live performance, with real bodies. The music is free; the bodily performance expensive...

Patronage -- ... The elusive, intangible connection that flows between appreciative fans and the artist is worth something..."

He talks of patronage in terms of listeners' willingness to pay something for Radiohead's downloads. I think he missed detailing a valuable point there: closing the feedback loop between audience and performer. No recorded performance and no payment can begin to capture the energy moving back and forth between a band and the people dancing a few feet in front of them. That's where I get and give real value.

(Via KK Lifestream.)

Not all experiments work out

Here's that variac I smoked:

Tim O'Reilly on the MS/Yahoo deal

Microsoft plus Yahoo! Strategic Assets in Email: "By Tim O'Reilly

So much of the chatter around Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Yahoo! revolves around competition with Google in the online advertising market. While that is a huge market, one that Google now dominates, and one that Microsoft has a jones for, that's a very narrow way to view the combination. And for Microsoft, it could be a fatal mistake to take the battle to Google on its own ground. That's the very mistake that companies like Netscape made in competing with Microsoft."

(Via O'Reilly Radar.)

I still haven't seen any reasoned look at the impact on Flickr!