Eight Generatives Better Than Free
- Immediacy — Sooner or later you can find a free copy of whatever
you want, but getting a copy delivered to your inbox the moment it is
released — or even better, produced — by its creators is a generative
asset. Many people go to movie theaters to see films on the opening
night, where they will pay a hefty price to see a film that later will
be available for free, or almost free, via rental or download. - Personalization — A generic version of a concert recording may be
free, but if you want a copy that has been tweaked to sound perfect in
your particular living room — as if it were preformed in your room —
you may be willing to pay a lot. - Interpretation — As the old joke goes: software, free. The
manual, $10,000. But it's no joke. A couple of high profile companies,
like Red Hat, Apache, and others make their living doing exactly that.
They provide paid support for free software. - Authenticity — You might be able to grab a key software
application for free, but even if you don't need a manual, you might
like to be sure it is bug free, reliable, and warranted. You'll pay for
authenticity. - Accessibility — Ownership often sucks. You have to keep your
things tidy, up-to-date, and in the case of digital material, backed
up. And in this mobile world, you have to carry it along with you. - Embodiment — At its core the digital copy is without a body. You
can take a free copy of a work and throw it on a screen. But perhaps
you'd like to see it in hi-res on a huge screen? Maybe in 3D? - Patronage — It is my belief that audiences WANT to pay creators.
Fans like to reward artists, musicians, authors and the like with the
tokens of their appreciation, because it allows them to connect. But
they will only pay if it is very easy to do, a reasonable amount, and
they feel certain the money will directly benefit the creators. - Findability — Where as the previous generative qualities reside
within creative digital works, findability is an asset that occurs at a
higher level in the aggregate of many works.
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