Cyberspace seems to offer the nearest thing to the economic theorists' "perfect competition" that you could find. But in reality it has resulted in some thumping monopolies.How to do those monopolies use their power? Not always well, judging by this tale from Books, Mud and Compost:
Obedience is what Amazon want. They do monitor sales and listings for transgressions: I was chastised several times for attempting to sell The Secret of Galleybird Pit by Malcolm Saville. Amazon maintained I was attempting to sell a proof copy as my listing contained the word "galley". In the end I gave up trying to sell that title on Amazon.
Or perhaps that is what comes from the belief that you can automate every process. I was once told (by Disgruntled Radical) that East Sussex County Council's anti-pornography software blocked the authority's own website when it was first installed and brought work to a standstill.
The irony is that The Secret of Galleybird Pit was originally published under the title Four and Twenty Blackbirds. It is set in a lightly fictionalised Lewes, where the offices of East Sussex County Council can be found.
4 comments:
I realised a couple of years ago that Amazon isn't a company I want to deal with. So I don't.
Thing is, it's very easy to get better deals elsewhere. Which I do.
Well, Amazon live in the off-line world for the most part - they benefit massively from the subsidised transport industry to move their goods for example.
I think its false to suggest that the Internet is close to perfect competition - at least anywhere where it interacts with governments.
There may be some corners of the Internet which do come close to perfect competition - blogging perhaps, and there may be some in-game markets which come close to perfect competition.
Microsoft phoned me yesterday (at least the caller eventually told me that he was phoning from Microsoft). It was a cultured South Asian voice, asking "How are you today?". Not very pleased about someone cold calling on Good Friday. He was trying to offer me some software. Told him that my phone is registered with the Telephone Preference Service and, even though he was phoning from India (which he said in answer to my questions), Micros**t of all companies should be aware enough to screen numbers.
But we do have to automate more services, except that, where they are in or for the public sector, there has to be strong accountability to the users. Remember the 2004 Information Assurance policy from Cabinet Office (Infosec and Service Quality)? Swept away in the tsunami that engulfed Blair at end 2004, but I still don't know where the earthquake epicentre was. Treasury, perhaps?
Lokean solution to Mr Calder's problem: call it "Gulleybird Pit" on the listing; *then*, when people email to check, tell them what it's really called! (And why if preferred.) If Amazon complain, pretend to be one of their more illiterate reviewers.. genuine mistake! Do as you've been done by!
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