Comment by broken-kebab
4 days ago
>What will happen if a decentralized Internet emerged and presented an existential threat to existing profit margins? Company lawyer would start to attack you, correct?
I think it's very misplaced concern. Commercially-viable internet will not be decentralized because of legal restrictions. If whatever engineering solution will be found to weaken them, governments will step in to curtail it. FWIW any moderately successful decentralization effort is more likely to be attacked from exactly this side: some countries will hate it for uncontrolled information dissemination, others for fiscal reasons.
I think this is overly bleak. Bittorrent exists and works since 20 years. And this is something that is more of a threat to commercial interests than e.g. a decentralized social network.
Also what kind of attitude is this? Government is too powerful, we might as well give up. Where's the fun in that. It is hard but also very rewarding.
Bittorrent is legally dangerous in quite a lot of countries where copyright is politically important issue, so as I see it the example supports my thesis.
>Government is too powerful, we might as well give up.
That's not what I wrote. My note is about proper understanding of real threats and obstacles.