Understanding the Internet: the T.I.P.B factor

If you think the Internet is obscure, then take a good second look around you.
Because Internet is all about.....
1.) TRANSPARENCY.

Just one of the fundamentals of Internet. This winning communication concept literally boomed during the last few years.
The basic idea is to break barriers between people by revealing everything, thereby making communication easier. This concept is applicable to professionals, big companies, especially to the "big sharks" such as Monsanto or Macdonald's. Commitment charts, social responsibility...everything is made available to a simple internet user like me. Making it easier for these good reputation seekers to justify themselves and scrape off a toxic image.
But the conjunction of internet and transparency is even more spectacular on the individual.
The internet is indeed the ideal space to communicate about oneself, as I am doing here with this blog. Platforms and especially social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, Myspace make it possible to know every single detail about people from their favorite artists to the brand of toothbrush they're using. There is maximum coverage. With Twitter and Facebook we can even enter celebrities' lives such as Demi Moores' or even the president of the United States', which seemed unconceivable just a few years ago. This link with the internaut was especially effective during Obama's campaign with the results we all know.
Of course, this overexposure has some down effects. Extreme transparency means public figures have to be perfect role models for instance. If they slip and say something bad or just downright stupid then you can be sure that same sentence will have the effect of a bomb on the internet and be broadcasted all over Youtube ("I can see Russia from my house", ring a bell?)...


And what about private property? Everything you do on the internet may be stored away, data can be given to other sites. No wonder some people receive viagra publicity in their mails. Moreover, when you type your name in google, you may find that internet knows quite a lot of things about you.
All in all transparency is an excellent and effective communication tool, but careful what you wish for...


Nothing lasts forever...
2.) IMPERMANENCE

Another fundamental! What's impermanent is something that will go away just as it came and be replaced by another thing. Think of kleenex or fashion.
The internet created its own ever cycling trend. For instance, not writing daily in this blog may just kill it. I will have to write new posts almost every day to keep my hypothetical audience on the watch.
Youtube will receive as many as thousands of videos a day. If I don't update my Facebook status then people will lose my track! It is all about fresh content. A never ending race embraced by the new technologies available on the net.
How many PCs are still on the XP operating system? Vista with its widgets and brand new applications is now a must-have. Just like in economics, the world wide web is keen on innovations. Seems like today, I'm more likely to have a flourishing social life on the web than in real life. As a matter a fact, I feel I am becoming more virtual by the minute. A little avatar icon on MSN, basically a SIMS. And this second life is quite exciting.
Aside from these almost philosophical considerations leading to the schizophrenia of the self, what's happening to those who can't catch the train in march?
All this may be going too fast for old people. I know this impermanence completely puzzles the elder persons in my life. Far too abstract.. they say. Towards a greater gap of generations? Stress? Yes, Impermanence is all about adapting yourself, new rules, new games. Welcome to the jungle of the Internet!


What can I do for you today?
3.) PRECIOUS OPPORTUNITIES

This slogan-like sentence can pretty much sum up one of Internet's main characteristics:
Internet can do everything!!
And there are so many examples of that:
- you can find a job. Monster, Profil Culture are websites which are updated everyday with new job offers. Internet can make you rich!
- you can find a new partner. Meetic, Love Intelligence.. the net is blooming with love.
- you can find a place to live. Pap, seloger.com will put in contact potential buyers and owners. Tested and approved!
- you can find help on the most random things. Forums are made for you if you need guidance on your cv, if you want to share some psychological issues, or just seek advice on pursuing studies abroad.
- you can find information. Internet has its own encyclopedia with wikipedia. The google search engine covers everything: What is the capital of Papoua New Guinea? Your jocker on "Who wants to be a millionaire" could find that for you in a heartbeat if he has the Internet.
Such a great and useful tool.
It is so easy to find what you're looking for on the internet that it's almost too simple. I could just stay in my chair with my laptop the whole day, since it can give me everything I need.
Meaning: these precious opportunities can reinforce any virtual addiction!


Talkin' bout a revolution
BREAKING THE HABITS


The Internet has no mercy for routine. It constantly outdoes itself with the help of all the individuals present on the web.
Here's a list of grammatical pasts I don't do anymore thanks to the Internet.

I used to watch TV, now I watch Youtube or Surfthechannel.
I used to listen to the radio, now I listen to last fm, Deezer etc..
I used to look at my mails first, now I directly go on Facebook or Twitter.
I used to go to supermarkets, now I shop online.
I used to call trip agencies to get a booking, now I go on Vueling, Voyages sncf etc..
I used to buy music in stores, now I buy music on Itunes.
I used to buy newspapers, now I go on LeMonde.fr
I used to look for definitions in the dictionnary, now I go on Wikipedia
And so on...

What more can I say? Interesting to see how the Internet is contributing to the decrease of other fellow media. Could this be the beginning of a unimedia, reuniting every media on a computer screen?
Seems so. Because Internet is the people's media, giving us a way to express ourselves like nowhere else.
Revolutionnary, yes indeed.

Free like the river?

What's up with the music industry today? Well, what if I tell you that the present and most probable future of music lies on the web. Breaking news right?
Now if we explore the reasons behind that, needless to say that I am guilty as can be, and so are my virtual peers. Seems like today, everything is easier to do behind a computer screen. I don't have to take the metro to the disc store anymore. So be it. More space in my room, less money for the artists. This is what they call tough love.

All this to say, that the debate is (and has been for quite some time now) on the internet. A debate for what?
Music majors have been trying to keep a handle on music downloading.
"Think of the artists, think of real people's jobs... Even online, please buy your music legally" was their message. On the other side stood the music pirates, eager to share the illegal music they had "stolen" with the whole world and for free.
Needless to say that on the net, temptation will always be strong to download illegally. So easy, so free. I've been there. But not controlling my overdownloading literally killed my PC.
A tragic death which compelled me to take a look at the less rock n roll side: I would try to restrain myself and buy the music online! Leading to the underlying topic of this article: what's the deal with legal downloading online today?

In the past few years, I find that this sector has greatly evolved. Let's take a step back to the symbolic 0,99 dollar for a song on ITunes, Apple's music giant. Granted that wasn't very attractive compared to illegal downloading. Of course, the majors such as Universal, EMI, Warner all joined the race, but were crushed by Itunes' success. The only thing they could do was lower the price. But this involved a new key innovation: DRMs. Probably every legal downloader's fiend!
One would think that it would finally be easier to buy music at a competitive rate, but what many people got wrong is that buying music on a website using DRMs does not mean owning the music. These "digital rights management" are protection here to make sure the downloader never truly owns nor shares his music. DRMs keep us from burning music to a cd and guarantee a never ending subscription to websites such as Musicme by forcing the user to show he is still a consumer all year long. A frustration which led to even more illegal downloading. Music majors were bound to sink deeper.

But today the wind is changing. Steve Jobs decided this January to definitely put an end to the impopular DRMs on Itunes. Many followed in his trail. Now music can actually be owned by people at a more comfortable price (0,60 dollars a song on Itunes), yet the battle is not yet over. Unlimited downloading is yet to be freed from its DRMs. The next step maybe?
Not quite. Ahead of everyone and quite unknown, Beezik is a website launched in June which seems quite revolutionnary. Unlimited free legal music without DRMs? Its possible! Well...more than half of the 2 million songs on the site are available without DRMs. The only drawback is to watch a 10 second commercial while downloading the song, thus paying dividends to the artist and major. A first step which is bound to shake the rocky world of legal downloading online.
Will all music in the future be that way and couple with the internet dream? Unlimited, free, legal? Stay tuned for the next episode...