Is anyone concerned that all our access to information may one day be funneled through one or two dominant corporations?
The internet by its very nature is a like a root growing in all different directions intertwining, tangled and ever expanding without restrictions and boundaries. It's a rhizome of decentralized growth.
Although Google, as benevolent as they appear to be, has the power now to direct public opinion, access to information, grant life of death to internet startup businesses, and mold sentiment all by determining which sites get search preferences. Case in point- I Googled "Large Penis" and lo and behold this site was first on the list. They have the power to make this site last on the list and in effect kill any new members from finding it, ending the viability of this site. Corporations are already paying Google to put their interests on the top of selected search lists. It already is changing who wins elections here. The control of information is death to democracies.
The potential for abuse is staggering. Google, as private corporation has no compelling moral obligation to it's users especially if the users aren't paying for their service. As George Orwell put it "Power corrupts and absolute power corrups absolutely." Google, most likely within the next 10 years will be the defacto gate keepers of the internet. It will be less of a root growing in all directions freely and more like a controlled growth dictated by a few, intentional or not, that's the trend. Does that sit well with you, however benevolent that entity may appear to be? Where do you see the internet in 10 years?
The internet by its very nature is a like a root growing in all different directions intertwining, tangled and ever expanding without restrictions and boundaries. It's a rhizome of decentralized growth.
Although Google, as benevolent as they appear to be, has the power now to direct public opinion, access to information, grant life of death to internet startup businesses, and mold sentiment all by determining which sites get search preferences. Case in point- I Googled "Large Penis" and lo and behold this site was first on the list. They have the power to make this site last on the list and in effect kill any new members from finding it, ending the viability of this site. Corporations are already paying Google to put their interests on the top of selected search lists. It already is changing who wins elections here. The control of information is death to democracies.
The potential for abuse is staggering. Google, as private corporation has no compelling moral obligation to it's users especially if the users aren't paying for their service. As George Orwell put it "Power corrupts and absolute power corrups absolutely." Google, most likely within the next 10 years will be the defacto gate keepers of the internet. It will be less of a root growing in all directions freely and more like a controlled growth dictated by a few, intentional or not, that's the trend. Does that sit well with you, however benevolent that entity may appear to be? Where do you see the internet in 10 years?