Lord Berners-Lee of the World Wide Web?

There is a rumour circulating around the Internet that the man who invented the world wide web, Professor Sir Tim Berners-Lee, is going to be given a life peerage if the Conservatives win the next General Election (1).

It was only yesterday that Murad Ahmed, writing in The Times suggested (2):

"Many have argued that he would have been awarded the Nobel Prize had his discoveries been spun out of traditional sciences"

Which honour would you rate as the higher of the two I wonder - Life Peer or Nobel Lauriete?

Notes

(1) The Local Democracy Blog http://lgiu.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/democratise-the-house-of-lords/ accessed 15 October 2009

(2) M Ahmed (2009) A worldwide waste of time...web creator admits those double slashes were a mistake, The Times, 14 October 2009

The free digital content debate goes on - draft

Libby Perves, writing in a recent edition of The Times (12 Oct 2009), argues that "the internet generation has grown up believing it can enjoy other people's hard work for nothing." She suggests that this must stop. She points to the 'backlash' that is underway in the music and newspaper industries. This backlash has been documented over recent weeks in The Times newspaper.

A major move in this direction was the plan announced by the Government to strengthen the measures outlined in the Digital Britain report to reduce illegal file-sharing. Creative industry chief executives backed this plan (The Times 1 Sept 2009), stressing the economic implications (just like Purves):

" as our film, television, publishing, music, sports and entertainment retail businesses go digital, their ability to invest in creating high quality content that millions can enjoy is fatally undermined by illegal filesharing. This has a direct impact on current and future employment opportunities for the British creative workforce, the promotion of emerging talent and on innovation in new digital content services."

Musicians, such as James Blunt and Lilly Allen sent letters to The Times supporting the proposals:

Musician James Blunt wrote a letter to the editor of the Times offering support to this viewpoint (The Times, 21st Sept 2009):

"I want to put my hand up in support of Lily Allen (Thunderer, Sept 16). She's asking British musicians to galvanise over a serious crime: the death of a great British industry - our music business.

The world over, people are stealing music in its millions in the form of illegal file-sharing. It's easy to do, and has become accepted by many, but people need to know that it is destroying people's livelihoods and suffocating emerging British artists."

Let us examine their argument. File sharing is rampant. As a consequence it is destroying the music scene and stifling innovation. Musician Tom Robinson (The Times 16 October 2009) counters both of these assertions. He feels it is 'derailing the gravy train' of the record companies, but songwriters "operate in a far more favourable environment...."

Is there evidence of innovation and creativity in the digital free economy? He thinks so. "You now need little more than a laptop and a good pair of ears to produce high-quality recordings at home...distribution on iTunes [costs] £30 ....Best of all, music and visuals can be 'broadcast' worldwide on Myspace and Youtube at no cost at all. You'll no longer make afortune but you'll certainly earn a living."