Emilie on Eberts

During his presentation, Jake Eberts spoke about business models in the film industry. It seems as though the film and television industry is beginning to embrace the idea of crowdsourced content and peer production. Someone in Los Angeles seems to have finally wised up to the fact that users experience media in a very different way than they used to. Modern technology has allowed users to transcend their (perceived) former role as passive consumers and become creators themselves.
There is a danger, however, in regard to large media entities like DC Comics and Oprah embracing crowdsourcing. Namely, one might jump too quickly to the conclusion that media has become de-centralized, democratized and that society has evolved in some culturally significant way. Allowing the public to graciously contribute to the next comic book studio picture may create the illusion that users have more of a voice than they actually do. It could make users think they’re participating and thus have the effect of rendering people more compliant than ever.
There is also something ironic about large media incorporating content from fans. In the context of the “copyright wars”, there is one argument that is regularly tossed around by the content industry: borrowing other people’s material does not constitute creation. In other words, someone should not be able “free-ride” off another person’s work when they can go out and create their own work. According to this logic it is unacceptable to take a two second sample of a snare drum from a Beatles track because one has the option of making their own recording. Of course copyright law itself is not this restrictive and only limits the use of copyrighted works where a substantial portion has been reproduced. From a legal perspective, the crowdsourcing context is different as it does not actually violate copyright law. Upon submission of content to the site, users are no doubt required to grant a licence of some sort. The reproduction of user generated content is therefore fully legal. It is more on moral or instinctual grounds that the adoption of other people’s work by the content industry seems problematic. After years of screaming about how using other people’s work is wrong and doesn’t constitute a new work, the content industry has suddenly adopted this process into their own business model? It seems a tad hypocritical.
Of course large studios can adopt any business model they like. After all, the “copyright wars” themselves are packed full of contradictory arguments on both sides and at this point are mostly just a lot of noisy rhetoric about ownership and free culture. Having fans submit media means that studios no longer have to produce their own content and also allows them to sit back and select the best idea. Peer production is a strong business model as it is beneficial both financially and creatively, yet it is important not to overemphasize its novelty or cultural significance.