global voices, one world

a coherent flow – yesterday macro-level big picture; today micro-level analyses more at the civil or civic level.

pilot study of a bigger scale research. clarifications: 1. emule is really an representative term to refer to a large number of p2p file sharing sites; 2. focuses on subtitles groups in the file sharing community.

why study it? how ict contributes to the decentralized form of media production and consumption. one particular form is p2p file sharing. such file sharing is illegal coz it violates copyright law. she wants to question coping with the new comm spaces using established institutions (laws and regulations).

trading digital products as commodified objects? the main question is what is the context contributes to the formation of these groups? why do ppl want to contribute? what are the mechanisms to coordinate the cooperation and keep the quality? what is the insight these groups can provide to ICTs in china.

method: filedwork in April 2009.

refers to jack’s comments about not taking china too seriously.

analytical framework: western theories and their applicability in china. henry jenkins on convergence culture. http://www.amazon.com/Convergence-Culture-Where-Media-Collide/dp/0814742815
benkler’s the wealth of network. http://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Networks-Production-Transforms-Markets/dp/0300125771/ref=pd_sim_b_3

findings: 1. why this becomes popular? the state-controlled media do not satisfy the needs. audience’s demand is important motives. personal interest such as fans of american dramas or foreign movies is another reason. 2. the extent of coordination among the groups. there are three or four major subtitle groups. there is fierce competition among them for recognition or reputation, not for material gains. e.g., within each group, there are three to four subgroups. one is responsible for moving the content from the servers, one for translation, etc. within the translation group, there are even divisions of languages such as english and korean. still another group is in charge of sychnronizing subtiltes and videos. a final group on disseminating the subtitles to forums and online spaces. 3. the incentives of the volunteer participation. non-material incentives beomce prominent in cyberspace. it challenges the bases of copyright law and the right it protects, which are often material-related.

conclusion – implications of this study. 1. quesionts the traditional notion of copyright 2. alternative mechanism of media production and distribution (non-state, non-commercial) 3. community with weak ties and interest-oriented communities. the volunteers do not know each other in most cases. but the weak ties indeed are able to mobilize collective efforts and to coordinate with each other.