Obscurity

By Tim O’Reilly

Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.

— Tim O'Reilly


Source

Piracy is Progressive Taxation, and Other Thoughts on the Evolution of Online Distribution, Tim O’Reilly, December 2002.

Written during the Napster controversy, this essay argued that piracy is a kind of “progressive taxation” that may chip a few percentage points off the earnings of people who are already famous, but lifts up the visibility of everyone else.

Fourteen years later, O’Reilly noted that these principles helped guide O’Reilly Media’s strategy and fuel their continued success.


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