Rabbit’s hole

Why do IP trolls and domain squatters exist ?

I’ve been reading from some while on the problems the american IP (intelectual property) system has, and annoyingly it is getting worse, and not better. And it’s not a single practice: domain registrars and other “dedicated” companies try to buy domain names just to extort a fee from some startup or average Joe, while they do nothing with it: a few Google ads, a few links and the wonderfully big title: “YOU can buy this domaine NOW from xxx” at the amazing price of 100 times it’s value. Why ? Because some company had the money to lease anything remotely inteligible: “www.zoobie.com”, “www.fifi.com” and so on.

When I first heard about problems like this, I’ve tought they’re just a problem of the IT industry and not a general thing, but you can see it everywhere : real estate companies buy land before a highway is developed so they can make some money on the tax-payers back, movie and music rights are used so to control the distribution (god forbid a artist put his or her succesful album on their site for 3 dollars the download) and it goes on and on. So what’s to blame ? Well, even if you’ll be getting a chill about this, it’s our notion of property. More to the point, the way we see property as absolute and inviolable.
Before yelling about your freedom to pursue happiness (meaning a Ferrari, a summer and winter house plus that by- yearly vacation to Taiwan for the “special” massage) think about it : property laws as they are now do not protect the individual - they protect any property what-so-ever, even infinitely stupid ones. Remember the guy that declared the moon his property because no one had done it before ? Well, if you apply the law, he’s right - the moon is his, and he’s selling it by the thousand miles a piece. What about the Mercury ? Venus ? What about every other galaxy besides ours ? What the hell, we might not even get there in our life times, but my children will be very happy to know their father will leave them the known universe - and I didn’t even have to use a doom’s day machine - just send an email to the bureaucrats of a few major countries.

But wait, you’ll say - we all have some property we want to defend - so we all gain from it. And this is the catch - property SHOULD be protected, but on a usage basis. Your house is your castle , but your second vacation house will cost you a lot more in taxes; fine if you want to buy a few islands, but if there is somebody with a more important claim that yours (like building houses for the native inhabitants), then you lose. You can go ahead and get rich but you should do it by producing something, not by speculating stuff. For example, in the dark world of IP, if a concurent can prove that your patent is not used in your products and he needs it, then it’s common property.

And how is this different from let’s say communism ? Well, first of all, this will only apply to resources that are limited and to situations that clearly impact other people : nobody cares if you buy a thoudsand miles of ocean surface and go crazy swimming in circles, but if that space happens to be a heaven for fishing, then it shouldn’t matter you were there first - you will either get reimbursed at your paying price, adjusted to todays normal value or change it for another one. None of that “my grandpa bought this land for a marble from the indiens so now I want a billion dollars because it happens to have oil” stuff. You can try buying actions from the next-to-be Google or invest in the dried frog legs that drunk gipsy mentioned on your 14th anniversary if betting on the future is your thing.

I happen to like perfect ideas - thinking eveybody has the same chances does make us feel better about the people we see every day, but that is not true in a world that seems to get a little crowded by the day and where interests widely differ. So while an individual’s property is sacred and should be protected at all costs, I think the cost may be a little too high if it affects a lot of people.