…the point of this article is? Yet again, another “content theft and copyright violation doesn’t matter” post?
Study Suggests Real Life Luxury Item Sales *Improved* By Knockoffs & Noobs — Also True With Second Life Content?
It’s one of Second Life’s greatest mysteries: though the sale of virtual items that are cheap knock offs of popular (and more expensive) Second Life brands remains a persistent and painful social problem, the total amount of Linden Dollars spent between users continues increasing. This led me to suspect SL content theft is actually a marginal part of the overall SL economy. However, I may be wrong, because the recent findings of an MIT professor suggest another, and I think better explanation. Put simply:
Maybe Second Life knockoffs actually increase the sales of the original brand.
This at least seems to be the case with real world luxury items, business professor Renee Richardson Gosline learned. After interviewing hundreds of consumers who knowingly bought knockoff luxury goods (fake Guccis, etc.) Professor Gosline found that 46 percent of them ultimately bought the legitimate version within two years. In other words, the act of buying knockoffs doesn’t diminish a desire for the real thing, and may even increase it.
Yeah, fuck that. Sorry Hamlet – I like you and all, but your “it doesn’t matter” campaign can suck my nonexistent.
Great agenda comment girl, but I doubt he has one. Just paying his bills with the blog and has to do that “what do you think” and when that does not work (note all his 1 or 2 comment posts) he cranks it up.
I commented over there because clearly he needs to define what “knockoffs” are to him. Are they items created by SL residents that resemble RL or other resident items but are hand created which would be a knockoff but not copyright infringement?
Or is it plain old copyright infringing items?
The answer to that changes the whole tone of the article (and I suspect the author meant my first definition of knockoff).
SL doesn’t have the cheap knockoff guy selling lower quality copies of original SL designs – thats where this article fails.
The guy selling ‘knockoffs’ is actually selling originals which are the exact same item.
Seeing the original news article on the weekend, I admit I immediately started considering what implications it may have in SL. My own assumption is that “Gucci knock-offs” in RL could be transposed to ripped content being resold by unscrupulous people, and bought by similarly unscrupulous people or those who are simply ignorant.
Given that, I think the scenario raised by blogger Kevin Drumm over at Mother Jones is about right. Most people who knowingly acquire ripped content were never going to spend the money to buy it legitimately at normal prices. This holds particularly true, I believe, with high-cost “luxury” products such as the very expensive Stilleto Moody shoes and things of that ilk.
At the same time, one factor that probaly does not fit with SL — and makes it even plainer that content rippers are not going to spend money on the stuff they rip — is that attachable content, at least, can easily be identified as a rip by inspecting.
So Drumm’s scenario explaining why so many people “upgrade” to legitimate luxury goods in RL doesn’t work here. If you know you’re wearing ripped stuff, you know that people can tell in most cases (skins, one of the high-ticket, often-ripped items, excepted), and you don’t care — or you barely care, and grab one of those stupid anti-inspect shields (which you’ve probably ripped off of some other ripping sucker who actually paid good money for it) that do not actually work, and so on.
What I take out of it? Education of the non-fashionistas to be able to identify rips and how to avoid wearing illegitimate content is probably going to be the most important thing to preserving the bottom line of content creators. Chasing after habitual rippers and habitual and knowing users of ripped content does very little to preserve the bottom line, because these people are not buyers.
I’m not saying one should stop pushing LL to do a better job, BTW. But if you look at this RL study and apply it to SL, the conclusion has to be that the money that’s being taken by rippers that would otherwise have gone into the pockets of legitimate creators comes largely from those who are ignorant of what they’re purchasing, and so it seems pretty reasonable to put more resources on steering them to legitimate content than into trying to stamp out every two-bit Cryolifer you come across.
I feel it applies to a very small extent, but one much smaller than Mr. Au is led(or may just pretends) to believe. There will always exist a number of residents who unknowingly buy ripped content. Of that number, a smaller percentage will feel guilty enough once they find out that they seek out the original merchant(s) and buy a legitimate product. A depressingly small percentage, to be sure, one which I admit feeling that no amount of ‘education’ will increase (just look at how well those ‘But I wasn’t hurting anyone’ anti-whatever ads work), but by the same token such a small percentage of the SL economy that it’s not worth mentioning.
The only possible way I can see this being an economic boost is the curiosity factor. If you tell someone, “Hey, Merchant X just got ripped!”, the reactions will vary. Some will be outright apathetic about it. Who cares, happens all the time, nothing we can do, insert LL insult here, etc.. Others will be more supportive of the merchant, stopping by their shop, offering encouragement in the form of “we’re all together with you on this” and buying their products. Still others will react out of nothing more than curiosity. Was Merchant X that good as to be ripped from? Let’s go check it out. Hey, this stuff isn’t bad, I’ll buy one of those and one of those and…
Again, the latter two would certainly boost sales and as a result the SL Economy, but in such a small quantity, much smaller than this blog entry suggests. I also agree that there’s no need to bring out the pitchforks on this one. Pat Mr. Au on the head, give him a virtual cookie and continue to educate the masses on the effects of content theft.
I don’t think your argument that illegitimate content is easier to identify in SL than in RL holds. If someone goes on vacation to Turkey and returns with a Gucci handbag or a Rolex watch, everyone who knows them (friends, neighbours, workmates, ..) will smell a rat. It’s just as obvious as inspecting prims in SL.
I’m also quite sure that any idea that starts with ‘we need to educate people’ is doomed to failure. People care for what they consider important, not for what you want them to consider as important. That’s precisely the reason why educating people about computer security fails and so many Windows machines are infested with viruses. You can’t change people, and the idea to improve the world by doing so has consistently failed.
As depressing and true as that comment may be, I don’t let that stop me from trying. Even a small victory is still a victory.
I don’t think that’s really the supported by the data. Most people who buy knockoff purses and so on are doing so to impress someone. If everyone knew it was a fake, then obviously, that would not work and so they would not buy. So it’s not so obvious as you make out.
For example, the person who buys a fake Rolex knowing that his friends and immediate circle of acquaintances will know it, may in fact be trying to impress some completely different group (say, people he meets casually at clubs) of people than that particular set.
It’s true enough that newbies won’t recognize ripped content from legitimate content. That’s why they’re the number one group to focus on — education does matter. The idea that education is doomed to failure strikes me as contradicted by this RL study, since it seems that in truth most people want legitimate luxury goods and go and get them when they can afford it.
Another well thought out and logical argument from Tenshi.
The argument doesn’t work here. In RL everyone knows Gucci or Versace brands but in SL — how many noobs know FNKY cake? And there is no reason to upgrade even if you know it is a ripoff because it is absolutely identical to the original. Maybe the researcher might actually want to log on to SL instead of voicing an opinion out of sheer ignorance.
I actually agree with that, at least in my personal experience. I have been handed the folder full of beautful hair that’s doing the rounds. All kinds of quality products in there and a lot of them. I loved some of them, but I don’t wear ripped content, I hunted around and bought the real deal, a sale the creator would not have had if it weren’t for the ripped gear.
So now we have the number one SL blogger supporting content theft? Why am I in no way surprised.
Oh and remember the turmoil and revolt inside LL a short time ago over the “suits” posting their 3rd party viewer registration announcement followed by some of the most interesting office hours I have ever seen and Rob Linden resigning?
Whatever happened to that third party viewer registration business? Seems like it just dropped off the end of the ADD cliff.
I.e.; LL will never change their position that purpose built counterfeiting/griefing viewers are welcome in Second Life.
Nah there’s another bloger aiding content theft by creating buildersbot.
The comparison fails because SL ripped content is not of lower quality, it’s the exact item. It will not fall apart in a few months, it doesn’t have cheap stitching showing. There’s no reason to upgrade to the real thing beyond guilt, and how many people are likely to feel bad about stealing pixels that someone else has already made bank with?
Hamlet doesn’t want SL to have the reputation of a haven of theft, so he downplays the issue. Suddenly content theft is good and creates sales that wouldn’t otherwise exist.
I was handed a stolen Curio skin on the beta grid yesterday. The girl knew it was stolen, she knew where it was from, but she was wearing it anyway.
I actually think ripping has hurt Redgrave. Many “ugly” avatars, like those shown in SL Fashion Police and SLFug, use ripped off Redgrave skins. For me, Redgrave feels like “Stripper/Escort/Gorean slave” skins. I have demo’ed Redgrave skins many times, and I might like them…. but the fact that they are so common and that no one except me will know that I bought it instead of got it in a freebie box, made me leaving without buying.
im going to lmfao when tenshis head explodes over such meaningless bs. how many “NOT REAL” second life websites does your avatar have now tenshi. its sad when “a game” takes over someones life like it has yours
There may be some logic to this. For example, if one knows who the original creator is of a ripped item one may have, then perhaps that person may go to their store and look around and perhaps purchase something they like.
I was given a folder of skins a long time ago, I think they were Redgrave, but they were terrible copies, however, I did go to Redgrave’s later and purchase 2 skin packs.
There is also some logic to teaching others how to recognize stolen content. I for one can’t tell the difference nor know how to look. I have a close friend who goes shopping with me, so I spend waaay to much money in SL. LOL
And I hardly doubt NWN was promoting or trying to convince people to steal. To assume something about a person w/out asking them first is just plain stupid, rude and uneducated.
Dear Tenshi,
Omg please..get a life! Your blogs are getting tired, the same old shit all the time. Content theft, content theft oh and content theft. Yes we all know it happens now so shut up…you really are like a broken record. Do you know your constant blogs about content theft make such boring reading? I use to love your blogs but now they have lost their fizz.
I think you need to take your hands out of that KFC Family Bucket (Yes, we have all seen your real life photo) & start writing some interesting blogs.
Merry Christmas
Linda
Dear Linda,
Kiss my ass.
Love,
Tenshi
PS – Can you tell me why you appear on a site called “Teen Bedroom”? http://lindeiy1.netfirms.com/joes_and_lindas_old_shed.htm …Are you possibly LaLinda Lovell, the child pervert? Nice to see you on SCD again. Figures you’d be crying about my constant campaign about content theft, seeing as how you are a thief yourself. Oh well! Back to my bucket…
Linda, you pissy little weasel. What justifies you getting personally insulting here? Where’s YOUR interesting blog, dimwit? Nasty, pointless and intentionally hurtful because Tenshi doesn’t entertain Her Royal Highness anymore. Awwww, poor baby. Lovely. At least Tenshi has a REAL life (happy marriage, absolutely adorable offspring) of the sort you NEVER will, you pathetic insensitive jerk.
OMG Linda LMAO at the KFC bucket thing, sorry, I shouldn’t but being mean to fat people does provide me entertainment.
I have seen her RL pic in her profle and it doesn’t look like she’s been near KFC.
I hate KFC…
lmfao, calling tenshi fat is like calling you mature.
it doesn’t make sense.
@Linda. Tenshi’s “Constant and boring blogs about content theft” may bore your tiny little airhead but they provide a valuable service to SL content creators.
They also unfortunately earn her useless and foolish flack from annoying self centered twits like yourself.
Grow the fuck up.
This does actually bring up an interesting concept. Okay so lets examine China. What is going on in China right now? They are making duplicate items that come across as the real thing. Some of them are so good that its hard to tell the difference straight up at first. I have frontline and bbc films I could show to back me up. Anyway last I checked since some of this has been happening, along with all sorts of other issues with the economy, China’s economy has been growing. And that is because of much financial investments and so forth but I think the production in those items probably plays a part. Is it right? Does it help the economy? Catch 22? By removing that would it affect China’s economy? And did I just really equate China and Second Life. Oh dear. Anyway Something I do want to point out is that the Second Life economy is a big deal. I quote” With its users swapping virtual goods and services worth around $600 million per year, Second Life has the largest economy of any virtual world – which exceeds the GDP of 19 countries, including Samoa.” More on that article can be found here: http://www.physorg.com/news174660264.html
P.S. I am not saying that the knock offs are good or bad. Just more equating the thought to a real life problem as well.
wow tenshi..the best thing you can come up with is “Kiss my ass” and are you this person on a porn site????
Here’s one Tenshi…Kiss my ass and is this you?”
“Fat Camwhore that writes articles about men that pretend to be women on the internet that constantly fight and steal each others pixel clothing. Her picture was obviously stolen from someone’s MySpace. She also apparently does advertising at SLH while running shoppincartdisco.com.
Her powerwords are (name and address removed)
Oh, honey. How pathetic. I’ve removed the name and address you’ve posted there because I don’t think whomever you’re harassing would appreciate the aggro of fucktards you’ve sent upon them.
10 bucks says she deletes that comment when she sees it..but if you have any doubts…
http://encyclopediadramatica.com/Main_Pages
Go there and search “Tenshi Vielle”
wow linda get a life lol we all know you are defending linda as well and you shound be on the encylopediadramatica as well lol