Comments on: New and Improved News http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/ Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made Sun, 27 May 2012 00:43:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: nick s http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/comment-page-1/#comment-188013 nick s Sat, 24 Feb 2007 00:59:07 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/#comment-188013 It looks as if the first round of feedback has been helpful in that regard: though I'm an expat, I know my way around the Beeb's schedule enough to make suggestions on things like 'series bundling' that won't scare the horses too much. On the archive, it'd be great if the corporation had the flexibility to adopt the classic tech strategy of 'seek forgiveness, not permission': that is, just bloody well do it and clear up any mess later once the rights-holders a) see that the genie's out of the bottle; b) realise it's not necessarily a Bad Thing. YouTube could do it, somewhat under the radar; but the BBC is not YouTube. While an outsider sees at least half a century's sunk costs in the BBC archives, those within the corporation see rights-wrangling that could keep them occupied for the next half-century, ready to kick off as soon as they twitch in that direction. It looks as if the first round of feedback has been helpful in that regard: though I’m an expat, I know my way around the Beeb’s schedule enough to make suggestions on things like ‘series bundling’ that won’t scare the horses too much.

On the archive, it’d be great if the corporation had the flexibility to adopt the classic tech strategy of ‘seek forgiveness, not permission’: that is, just bloody well do it and clear up any mess later once the rights-holders a) see that the genie’s out of the bottle; b) realise it’s not necessarily a Bad Thing. YouTube could do it, somewhat under the radar; but the BBC is not YouTube. While an outsider sees at least half a century’s sunk costs in the BBC archives, those within the corporation see rights-wrangling that could keep them occupied for the next half-century, ready to kick off as soon as they twitch in that direction.

]]> By: Steve http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/comment-page-1/#comment-188008 Steve Fri, 23 Feb 2007 23:33:34 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/#comment-188008 As always when Doctorow is on the topic of DRM, it's worth checking the facts for yourself. He doesn't always seem to understand the details of what he's talking about, and he's much more of a ax-grinder than a straight reporter on this subject. For instance, as far as I can tell, the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/news/press_releases/31_01_2007.html" rel="nofollow">latest</a> mention of the matter from says that the BBC Trust "requires the BBC to develop an alternative DRM framework to enable users of other technology, for example, Apple and Linux, to access the on-demand services" within a "reasonable timeframe". His claim that the BBC will force a Ubuntu-loving U.K. to purchase Windows would seem to be nonsense. As always when Doctorow is on the topic of DRM, it’s worth checking the facts for yourself. He doesn’t always seem to understand the details of what he’s talking about, and he’s much more of a ax-grinder than a straight reporter on this subject.

For instance, as far as I can tell, the latest mention of the matter from says that the BBC Trust “requires the BBC to develop an alternative DRM framework to enable users of other technology, for example, Apple and Linux, to access the on-demand services” within a “reasonable timeframe”. His claim that the BBC will force a Ubuntu-loving U.K. to purchase Windows would seem to be nonsense.

]]> By: nick s http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/comment-page-1/#comment-187863 nick s Fri, 23 Feb 2007 05:03:27 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/#comment-187863 I count Cory as a friend, but he's being disingenuous here, and he knows it. The iPlayer initiative was always a separate development from the Creative Archive, addressing a different audience and offering different content. The people within the BBC who've worked their arses off to open the archives have had to deal with all the problems of a generic large corporation, plus the special problems of the BBC's position and structure, plus the specific problems of the BBC's top-level management in recent years. In short, it took a long time to work something up to satisfy Greg Dyke, then he was forced out; and the post-Hutton restructuring put them back at square one. Shooting spitballs from the position of a privileged outsider is fine and dandy, and perhaps Cory thinks he's helping the people who've been fighting turf battles inside the organisation for a number of years. But I suspect he's doing the opposite. If the people running the Beeb's internet strategy had the power in their hands, and the ability to dictate terms to rights-holders, everything would be out there, in the open, DRM-free, right now. I count Cory as a friend, but he’s being disingenuous here, and he knows it. The iPlayer initiative was always a separate development from the Creative Archive, addressing a different audience and offering different content.

The people within the BBC who’ve worked their arses off to open the archives have had to deal with all the problems of a generic large corporation, plus the special problems of the BBC’s position and structure, plus the specific problems of the BBC’s top-level management in recent years. In short, it took a long time to work something up to satisfy Greg Dyke, then he was forced out; and the post-Hutton restructuring put them back at square one.

Shooting spitballs from the position of a privileged outsider is fine and dandy, and perhaps Cory thinks he’s helping the people who’ve been fighting turf battles inside the organisation for a number of years. But I suspect he’s doing the opposite. If the people running the Beeb’s internet strategy had the power in their hands, and the ability to dictate terms to rights-holders, everything would be out there, in the open, DRM-free, right now.

]]> By: Tim Sullivan http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/comment-page-1/#comment-187803 Tim Sullivan Thu, 22 Feb 2007 19:57:27 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/#comment-187803 Given hopes and ambitions for the semantic web, it seems ludicrous for big organizations to hold onto content in order to . . . what exactly? Maintain control of something? Whatever the motivation, as data becomes more machine readable, searchable, and intelligent, locking material up, limiting its possibilities, will make the organization in question a much less significant player in all of those aspects of culture mediated by the internet. That seems a huge price to pay for short term control. Given hopes and ambitions for the semantic web, it seems ludicrous for big organizations to hold onto content in order to . . . what exactly? Maintain control of something? Whatever the motivation, as data becomes more machine readable, searchable, and intelligent, locking material up, limiting its possibilities, will make the organization in question a much less significant player in all of those aspects of culture mediated by the internet. That seems a huge price to pay for short term control.

]]> By: leederick http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/comment-page-1/#comment-187794 leederick Thu, 22 Feb 2007 19:06:45 +0000 http://crookedtimber.org/2007/02/22/new-and-improved-news/#comment-187794 <i>"As he says, the BBC exists to make its content maximally available to the public."</i> No it doesn't. The purpose of the BBC is not to use tax extracted from the British public to provide non-residents with free stuff. It's in their charter. “As he says, the BBC exists to make its content maximally available to the public.”

No it doesn’t. The purpose of the BBC is not to use tax extracted from the British public to provide non-residents with free stuff. It’s in their charter.

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