Are Social Networks Becoming the New RIAA?

Not yet. But there are a few instances that show how social networks have proven to disappoint the user.

MySpace recently has been taking away the ability to use a few outside sources. For example, Tila Tequila was recently contacted by Tom Anderson in regard to her music player and webstore called “Hoooka”, which apparently violated MySpace’s terms of service. Justin Goldberg, the chief executive of Indie911, the company the created Hoooka was quoted in a New York Times article saying, “We find it incredibly ironic and frustrating that a company that has built its assets on the back of its users is turning around and telling people they can’t do anything that violates terms of service”.

The article also YouTube. Michael Barrett, chief revenue officer for Fox Interactive Media, a part of the News Corporation, said “We probably should have stopped YouTube…[It] wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for MySpace. We’ve created companies on our back”. Stopping YouTube early on might have made MySpace Video more successful.

The story is similar to what the RIAA has done with DRM. You are given something to use, but your rights dictating what you can do with it, are minimal or they are being taken away. Hopefully, social networks will see their error before it’s too late. If the look at the RIAA as an example of what not to do, maybe they will re-think their decisions, and give people the freedom that they want.