Produce but do not possess.

Chapter 51, Wing


VIII. NO OWNERSHIP OF INFORMATION

Once an information product is published, creativists have no ownership or control over it. Any part of it my be incorporated into another product. What you do may be freely re-arranged or augmented and then re- released for sale.

Keep in mind, however, that any item you make will have your individual fingerprint on it. If any item with your fingerprint is included in someone else's product, you will receive a share of their profits. This mechanism is built into Gravity, the language for information exchange on the Immuexa network. Because of this advanced technology, true anonymity becomes viable. What more, this setup promotes interaction and interconnection to a new and surprising degree.

At first glance, this principle sounds Marxist. Take a step back and remember principle #6: No Lasting Organizations. Individuals are always in control. It's just that no one has any control beyond the individual. If anything, this plan describes a true democracy.

An example is in order. Again, let's use the multimedia chemistry program. The first project is completed, and the whole thing is published. Some creativists at the University of Nowhere use it and like it but have their own ideas as to how the testing should be done. The simple question and answer method used by the first group doesn't float their boat. They'd rather let the student guide the system through a series of experiments tied to the knowledge being presented. This more complicated testing system is assigned to a team of creativists, and within a year, they've developed a system to their liking. They publish their new, expanded system, under another name.

It's more successful than its predecessor. Let's say that the system as they've released it costs $1000. Let's also say that the work they did costs $200 of that $1000. They make just that for every sale. The original project team, with the exception of those that made the replaced testing system, will receive the same profit for their work as they would if it were a sale of the original system.

The original system is still available, but now it's available in another version as well. Everyone except the previous testing team benefit from the increased exposure. This is how it should be. Someone came up with a better testing idea, and the product improved as whole because of it.

In today's world, such evolution is held back because of individual ownership. I might love the WordPerfect word processing program, but hate the way it does indexing. As WordPerfect Corporation has complete control of the product, I cannot improve their work with my own ideas. Products available on the Immuexa network are available as a collection of items, each replaceable with one or more alternatives. People will be able to mix and match the best of everything available.

Outside of software systems, this sort of free exchange works equally as well with other information products. Creativists will be able to freely intermix all text, image, and sound items at their disposal. They'll be able to create text anthologies, video documentaries, music mixes, and true multi-media encyclopedic collages. Information items that have widespread appeal will be included in many products, and so will generate more influence, and as a result, more cash for creativists.

But what of artistic integrity? Won't all this interaction dilute the true merit of a work? Keep in mind that everything, even the old stuff, is equally accessible. If what you make stands on its own, and has its own integrity, it will endure. Yes, it'll be included in other products. But the original will remain available. What more, your product will be accessed more frequently if one of its derivatives gains popularity, just as cover songs often bring a new audience to their originals.