Free is good. I like free. Answers to my questions are great. I love people answering my questions. Add those two up, mix in a dash of internet message boards, and Bam!...a perfect example of a gift economy.
The term 'gift economy', as defined by Wikipedia, is "a social theory in which goods and services are given without any explicit agreement for immediate or future quid-pro-quo," (Wikipedia). Gift economies have been part of human nature since the dawn of man. Literally. More recently, however, internet users have created an online gift economy in which information and things like software are traded freely and openly between users. According to Peter Kollock, a main difference between a physical gift economy and an online one, say an information message board, is that when one shares information, it is impossible for a receiver to repay them due to the anonymity of the internet by nature. Kollock goes onto explain how the original information sharer would most likely feel entitled to one of their own questions being answered on the message board in the future (Kollock 1999).
Another point Kollock brings up is the difference between a gift economy, and a system primarily run by commodities. Kollock explains that a gift exchange creates a unique situation where the gift is, to use his words, “inalienably” attached to the one who gave it. With commodities, however, there is no sense of debt or personal attachment to he who gives the product (Kollock 1999).
From the blossoming gift economy that the internet opened up, a movement called the Open source culture began to take shape. Open source refers to “the creative practice of appropriation and free sharing of found and created content,” (Wikipedia). This content ranges from music, to videos, to pictures and software found on the internet, and it can be freely distributed around the web. Although there is much criticism from companies who would normally make money off of this free software, some argue that open source sharing is a great way to get the best programs available. The article Why Open Source on Redhat.com states,
“And we believe open source simply creates better software. It multiplies one company's development capacity many times over. Everyone collaborates, the best software wins.”
This is quite valid because as the software, for example, gets passed around on the open source system, people are free to change and add improvements to it (Redhat).
As I think about it, I participate in many online gift economies. As an avid Wikipedia surfer, I realize how massive of an information gift economy it really is. People can log in and add valid information to real-time updated articles for no real reward except the satisfaction of helping a fellow user. Of course, the validity of what the people add to the sites is monitored and removed if needed, giving an extra sense of security to those who read the articles.
Another gift economy that I at one time was involved in was the sharing of audio files on programs like Kazaa and Morpheus. This peer to peer gift economy was set up in the way that one could chose to share his or her files while at the same time downloading others. Basically, if you were a team player in these communities, you were expected to share your files as a gesture of appreciation for downloading everything you could get your hands on. If you didn’t choose to share your personal mp3’s or what-have-you, you could still take others with no ramifications.
I think gift economies are a great thing. Open source cultures on the internet are a wonderful example of a giving community that I wish we could all be a part of outside of the virtual world. It is very comforting to know that, in spite of the incentive of free stuff, people still care to help their fellow man.
Sources
1) Wikipedia Article. Gift Economy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gift_economy.
2) Kollock, Peter. (1999).The Economies of Online Cooperation: Gifts and Public Goods in Cyberspace. http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/faculty/kollock/papers/economies.htm.
3) Why Open Source? 18 Sept 2008. http://www.redhat.com/about/whyopensource/
4) Wikipedia Article. Open Source. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source
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2 comments:
The differences between physical and online gifts can be huge i agree. Whether its posting on someone's wall or sending them a fake gift on facebook cant compare to someone showing up at your door with an actual box with a bow.
Nice way of describing gift economies and examples of them Emeril.
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