
The Pirate’s Dilemma: How Youth Culture Is Reinventing Capitalism
- Title:The Pirate’s Dilemma: How Youth Culture Is Reinventing Capitalism
- Author:Matt Mason
- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Free Press; Reprint edition (May 5, 2009)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 141653220X
- ISBN-13: 978-1416532200
I saw this book in a bookstore when we were trading in books and decided to give it a try – I’m glad I did, overall.
The author places piracy in a market context – so instead of knee-jerk reactions, this book studies the affect of free access on markets. “Pirates highlight areas where choice doesn’t exist and demand that it does.” (p. 46) There are a few case studies, most from the music industry – not surprising since the author was co-founder of a famous British music magazine. I thought the hip-hop study went on too long; otherwise I thought the pacing of the material was good and the style clear and easy to read.
The last part of the book discusses the actual dilemma – that pirates create a new gap in a market, effectively disrupting it from the very bottom (free). Businesses have two ways to respond:
- Legal – try to shut down the pirates, or
- Compete – try to co-opt the market
The legal approach only works if the market is niche, marginalized or if the product is upmarket, otherwise competing is the alternative.
If you’re looking for a good book on the positive side of piracy and what it means about and for markets, this is a good choice.
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October 7th, 2012 by alephnaught