Would have posted this under Lynn168's
excellent post about
LibraVox, but I think this is the other side of the coin. Anyway:
Wowio allows users to download from their collection of
ebooks still protected under copyright, with some limitations:
- Users must register in order to gain access to their library.
- Users are limited to three downloads per day.
- Although Wowio claims they feel that "technology-based DRM is essentially a fraud," publishers/content owners may still restrict use of texts via Adobe Reader controls [see Lessig's Free Culture, 148-53]. I'd be willing to bet $10 that some of these controls are exercised on works in the public domain.
So, this is somewhere in between Netflix and a library, which--to me--is great. But I'm not sold enough to give it a try yet. From the FAQ:
Does WOWIO use any kind of digital rights management (DRM)?
Since anyone can defeat the most "sophisticated" DRM with the print screen button, we believe that technology-based DRM is essentially a fraud. Our approach takes the market incentive out of misbehaving, rewards people for doing the right thing, and tries to stay out of the way of honest users.
^ emphasis mine. I like their ethos here, and took note of the morality approach there at the end. But:
To help keep everyone honest, however, readers must authenticate their identity and agree to a licensing agreement when they set up their account. Then, each ebook is serialized with the reader's authenticated name and a unique serial number, as well as other less visible markers. WOWIO will immediately terminate the account of anyone caught illegally distributing ebooks, and will prosecute serious offenders.
Again, emphasis mine. Why not call a spade a spade and just recognize that some of us cannot be trusted? I'm not railing against Wowio--it seems like they have good intentions--but it's clear that somebody, somewhere, has a different definition of "free" than I do, and is worried that this free experiment will run out of control.
In the very next question in the FAQ, Wowio explains their business model that is awfully close to what Lessig and Logie are talking about--basically, that this business model might lead people to go out and buy the print versions.
So what are we to make of this? On one hand, I feel like it's a step in the right direction. I don't mind that it's ad-supported so long as someone isn't trying to sell me another Baconator on page 146 of Cat's Cradle (available on Wowio, actually). And I can see where this distribution method might benefit aspiring authors willing to allow their work to be available for free, as well as established, "I've heard of her but never read any of her stuff" writers.
But on the other hand, why not go all out and slap a CC license on your work? That would get rid of the hassle of signing up (as well as make an end run around those pesky privacy concerns). My guess is that it eliminates the ad revenue from the equation. And we can't have that, now, can we?
