The Digital Age Manifesto

In the digital age, information flows.

Content is no longer controlled; it is created and released.

The old guard will fight to hold on to control.

The speed at which they lose control is the speed at which the digital age arrives.

The goal of this project is to accelerate progress towards the digital age.

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Thanks for the interest in The Digital Age project and its software, aimed at giving you complete control of your media.

Difficulty of ramping up

I am asking you to commit control of an important part of your life to my software. This is not minor. For example, you will need to commit to improving your metadata for it to work. You will be using metadata formats that I have created. When you jump, you really are in this with me. You will be depending on the quality of my work.

This is not a small thing. I want to retain creative control, yet I am only one person, and by myself can only do so much. My schedule is not even fully my own at this time.

Let me start by saying that I will always provide you with complete access to and control of your data - it is YOURS not mine.

Ideally, eventually, I can open-source the software without losing creative control or the ability to make enough revenue to devote all my time to it (my ultimate goal). Done right, this will empower the software to grow and stabilize. I am committed to open source. But first I have to prepare - the initial software release must be high enough quality to prevent forking and fragmentation and loss of control. I have to have a revenue strategy, enough to keep me working on the software full time. These are not simple goals.

Meanwhile, I will keep my obsession alive, and hammer away at every opportunity. Eventually, I hope to hit enough critical mass to set up a fully supported foundation that can manage the legal aspects, and keep the project protected, funded and growing.

What about the artist?

The RIAA and MPAA and other major media players have established most of the language we use on this subject: "pirates steal from artists". A well-known problem, right? Let's start from another perspective.

What do we have in the 21st century? The ultimate digital distribution system. What do the RIAA and MPAA represent? Outdated distributors that used the fact that we were locked into physical distribution to take ownership and control of our culture - for generations - injecting themselves between artists and fans, and bleeding money from both sides. Creativity was walled into a narrow channel of lowest-common-denominator media. This is why the forty-somethings you know can all sing the theme song to the Brady Bunch word for word.

Two hundred years ago, musicians didn't have this cultural conduit in place. They played music because they had passion, and if they were lucky and talented they could find a few folks to show them some appreciation. Occasionally artists lived quite well due to the patronage of others.

Now, musicians, artists, filmmakers, software developers and many others can thrive with proper leverage of the distribution system. We don't need to destroy or even cripple our digital distribution system for artists to make money. In fact, it is arguably mankind's greatest creation. The best new artists' work can be discovered and shared, so that any talented artist has the potential for overnight success. Artists that consistently create meaningful art will create massive fan bases over time. The global digital distribution system is the ultimate environment for the talented artist, and for the people in need of a rich culture.

Thanks for your interest, and I am hopeful that we can develop a partnership. Feedback is always welcome.