Sign in with Facebook
5th out of 16 books
—
27 voters
The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom
With the radical changes in information production that the Internet has introduced, we stand at an important moment of transition, says Yochai Benkler in this thought-provoking book. The phenomenon he describes as social production is reshaping markets, while at the same time offering new opportunities to enhance individual freedom, cultural diversity, political discourse...more
Hardcover, 528 pages
Published
May 16th 2006
by Yale University Press
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,194)
I trudged through Yochai Benkler’s “The Wealth of Networks”, his award winning treatise on how social production is transforming societies. Benkler, the Berkman Professor of Entrepreneurial Legal Studies at Harvard, writes that mankind is on the cusp of a shift in cultural and personal practices due to the multitude of cheap and easy to use communication tools. At the core of Benkler's story is the emergence of new information sharing methods in which individuals are able to take an active role...more
The book is quite long but I haven't seen any better analysis of the relationship between current technological, economic, legal developments, and how the relationship of production and consumption is changing in the process. I find the book a bit weak on sociological insights. But still very worthwhile read.
I agree with David - this book does not live up to billing. I totally subscribe to the thesis that the world of content production is changing, and that social production is a vital part of the future of the "knowledge economy". But the policy conclusion I think Benkler was trying to get to was that today's regulation - geared to proprietary content production - inhibits social production. However, his evidence of the success of social production and no compelling economic arguments in favour le...more
Building on Lessig’s insights, but generalizing them for a wider range of internet-related phenomena, Benkler champions the networked society, especially the free software movement, peer-to-peer sharing networks, and the internet’s influence on social relations and justice in the developing world. He puts together a detailed argument with attention to both technical and legal questions, though it gets repetitive at times. Historical insights help too: he sees our regulatory environment as still...more
Este livro é um clássico para quem pretende estudar a Sociedade da Informação
Está disponível em formato digital para download em http://www.benkler.org/Benkler_Wealth...
O autor é Isrealita e apresenta uma visão muito própria do que se pode explorar no contexto das redes e do seu valor, sendo considerado um dos intelectuais da idade de informação tem formação na área de direito e das leis
Definitivamente um texto a ler, recomendo
Um apresentação TED (2005) deste autor sobre a economia do open-sourc...more
Está disponível em formato digital para download em http://www.benkler.org/Benkler_Wealth...
O autor é Isrealita e apresenta uma visão muito própria do que se pode explorar no contexto das redes e do seu valor, sendo considerado um dos intelectuais da idade de informação tem formação na área de direito e das leis
Definitivamente um texto a ler, recomendo
Um apresentação TED (2005) deste autor sobre a economia do open-sourc...more
I suspect it would be quicker and more satisfying just to read the Coase's Penguin paper and skip this more extended version. Still, the exploration of economic analysis of non-market motivations for information contribution is pretty fascinating and really important. While Benkler alludes to standards bodies, open source hierarchies and the general importance of institutional ecology, that part is handwaving, when it's clear those details are essential.
I didn't realize the title/allusion until...more
I didn't realize the title/allusion until...more
Finishing this book was like pulling teeth. I really did not enjoy it. I only forced myself through all 500+ pages because it is considered an important part of the canon on social media research.
Benkler attempts a compendium of how the Internet is changing the information economy but he does not make new or bold assertions. In fact, there is very little in terms of theory or anecdote that I have not already read in works such as Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky, Convergence Culture by Henr...more
Benkler attempts a compendium of how the Internet is changing the information economy but he does not make new or bold assertions. In fact, there is very little in terms of theory or anecdote that I have not already read in works such as Here Comes Everybody by Clay Shirky, Convergence Culture by Henr...more
2 likes · like · see review
Thoroughly enjoyed this book when it came out, as an audio book - it's a well considered and well researched, carefully laid out argument, in Benkler's rock solid but charming style. I enjoyed it so much I bought the hardcopy, despite the fact that there's a downloadable pdf-version available for free online too. But I had to own it and have it on my shelf for future reference. Can recommend Benkler's many conference performances as well in an audio or video format - the first one I heard was on...more
Poignant and provoking - Benkler explores the opportunities we face, as well as scrutinizing the biggest threats to their emergence. We stand on the verge of a new age, but our evolution is not guaranteed. We have every reason to fear for progress and if we don't account for the threats and address them thoroughly and with great zeal, the incumbent powers that be will rob us of the potential we have in order to maintain their dominance (even if at the expense of the creative and productive capac...more
May 16, 2010
Jason
added it
This is another important book for people interested in the Internet or Web culture.
Spanning cultural ownership, mass amateurization, crowdsourcing, and other Web phenomena, this book paints an important portrait of how the world is changing as a result of low transaction costs and group-formation.
A dense but pleasant read.
Spanning cultural ownership, mass amateurization, crowdsourcing, and other Web phenomena, this book paints an important portrait of how the world is changing as a result of low transaction costs and group-formation.
A dense but pleasant read.
Read by ACRL Member of the Week Stephen Francoeur. Learn more about Stephen on the ACRL Insider blog.
Aug 04, 2009
Greg
is currently reading it
Been reading forever. Really interesting, but takes a ton of focus to really extract all that's being discussed.
Jul 05, 2009
Mike
is currently reading it
Great so far. Learned about non-rival goods, various stratagies of entering into the information economy, etc.
I legal and economic critique of copyright and patents. It changed my mind entirely on intellectual property
Great book about the power of networks. I think the information fills more space than was warranted, however.
Feb 06, 2010
Angela Alcorn
marked it as to-read
Entire book is available free to read here.
Totally astonishing. One of the most important books I have read in recent memory.
Socially mediated communication is an economically rational activity
Available as free download; Creative Commons License.
Test test testy test test test test tra lal la al
Feb 18, 2010
Ian
marked it as to-read
Available online at: http://yupnet.org/benkler/
My recommendation is that you stay as far away from this book as possible. Not because it's bad, actually it's really good, but it's dense and long and covers fourteen million different subjects, which is why the last two weeks of class we all kept saying hey, Benkler talked about that! It's one of those books that I read and hated and then everyone discussed it and I didn't hate it as much, but it still made my brain hurt. And maybe I still hate it a little bit too, but now it's in my brain and...more
There are some great ideas buried deep within rather wordy prose. Benkler is more engaging is person (i.e. watch the various presentations of the ideas in this book available through you tube). He seems to have a habit of fearing that you are not appreciating what he is conveying so he tends to come at the same point from a variety of perspectives in each chapter. The trick I suppose is to click to this mode of operation and when you feel that he has made his point skip along to the next major p...more
Sep 15, 2008
Jon
added it
Benkler breaks down motivation into three separate reward types: monetary rewards, instrinsic-hedonistic rewards, and social-psychological rewards. In some cases a monetary reward could be inversely related to social-psychological satisfaction. For example (Benkler’s example), a friend who invites you to dinner might be offended if you tried to pay him/her. Realizing these differing motivations, a prospective project might focus its efforts on setting up non-monetary benefits. Interesting read.....more
2.5
Tremendous work delving into the role and importance of open source philosophy and the social networking influence of the internet. Definitely an academic work. It suffers from occasional obtuse passages, and some overwriting, but it a comprehensive resource for liberty-loving geeks everywhere.
Authoritative and scholarly analysis of the social, political and economic impacts of online networks. Unlike almost every other book on the subject, this was not out of date before it was even published. An antidote to the giddiness that still attends commentary of the internet.
I think I've been reading this for 6 months. I finally finished reading the whole thing all the way through. And now I know what the word "orthogonal" means. Look for a more scholarly discussion of this book's message in an article coming to you... soonish.
Za one koji pokušavaju da razumeju svet ovo je OBAVEZNA KNJIGA!!!
Yochai Benkler je profesor na Harvard Law School i ova njegova knjiga mi je najviše pomogla da razumem razliku između Interneta i starih medija.
Yochai Benkler je profesor na Harvard Law School i ova njegova knjiga mi je najviše pomogla da razumem razliku između Interneta i starih medija.
good political economy perspective on the rise of peer production/social production/nonmarket production. nice summary on wikipedia for those that don't want to plow through the full text.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Oct 17, 2009 06:48pm
I'd say the saddest thing about this book as...more
Oct 18, 2009 09:23am
Oct 18, 2009 11:04am