Vectors Mutate
AI summary of the linked articleVectoralist power has mutated since McKenzie Wark's *A Hacker Manifesto*, shifting from intellectual property to large digital platforms as its main means of value extraction, so hackers should revise their counterstrategies. Wark's book, printed in 2004 after appearing online in 1999, identified IP as the property form through which a vectoralist class monopolizes information produced by hackers. Platforms now rely on permanently produced free content, algorithmic curation and surveillance, while IP has declined in importance except in content disputes, though hardware and software companies still fight hard over patents. |
1 comment mishaSubmitter “Platforms can be defined as infrastructures that encompass both material components and software, and that enable people to produce and consume information. The apparent neutrality of the word “platform” was specifically crafted so that platforms could avoid responsibility for their content and could distinguish themselves from mass-media companies.” With the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Doerov we are experiencing a push to shift in paradigm as governments try to get grip on “platforms”. The arrest brings also to mind the recent Tornado Cash case. How neutral is infrastructure? Can you hold “platforms” (also thinking X, Meta) accountable for the content posted by their users? Could you sue the telephone company if you were scammed by a fake call? Where is that line drawn? |