Stealing Empire: P2P, Intellectual Property and Hip-Hop Subversion

by Adam Haupt

Using the work of Antonio Negri and Michael Hardt as a starting point, this groundbreaking inquiry poses the question What possibilities for agency exist in the age of corporate globalization? Issues surrounding copyright via peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms such as Napster, free speech struggles, debates about access to information, and open-content licenses are examined. The broad ranging impact of global corporate monopolist tendencies on aspects of media culture and youth culture are discussed, and alternatives to proprietary models for the production of knowledge and culture, such as open-source software and Creative Commons licenses, are considered. Whether examining empire stealing through commoditization of countercultures, or the stealing empire activities of file-sharers and hip-hop activists, the dynamic tension among marketplace, community, and individual are presented for law, media, and cultural studies scholars.

272 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2008

Reviews

[Pixie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is hip hop in Africa? Copyright and free culture debate in this book is put into wider historical and global perspective and examined through number of interconnected relations in contemporary capitalism. This is relying much on Hardt and Negri's Empire which definitely offers a fresh perspective on issues of free culture and copyright but... if you ask me, a little too much: the author doesn't doesn't refer to any other author debating the nature of (global) capitalism nor does he offer any critical approach to their work. This is truly a pity since he's definitely capable of doing so as one can see it in his usage of Lawrence Lessig's and Yochai Benkler's claims. However, the book is bold, well written, arguments are clear and concise, and above all, it an interesting read - which, I have to say, most of literature discussing P2P and copyright is NOT. It might not the best book ever written, but it's definitely one of the best book written about P2P and copyright debates I've read so far. If you intend to read anything about it, read this one.