Piracy and the end of culture.

Piracy is killing human culture – and it shocks me to observe how little is being done about it. In the last few days, I came across an author’s article on the Internet discussing the impact of piracy and torrent sites on her livelihood. It made for very sad reading. This writer was a very prolific writer. She had to be...for one very real reason: her books were showing very low sales. Now, why was this so? Well, each of her works was being pirated massively. Now, this had a very real impact on her livelihood and career. Despite writing very productively, each day of her life, she found it difficult to make a good living. Yet, the impact of piracy went way beyond that. You see, this author was a writer of series, based on characters she had invented. Now, she revealed that her publisher had CANCELLED three of her series, owing to poor sales, due to piracy. These series had come to an abrupt end, because her publisher was unwilling to invest more money, supporting series that were being stolen wholesale, but sold very little. As a result, neither the author, nor her publisher were able to make enough money from the books, to make it worthwhile continuing to publish them or write them – so the series stopped, in mid-flow, their interrupted stories never to be completed.

This author had recently started publishing a fourth series. She dearly hoped that this wouldn’t be killed by piracy, too. Yet, it seems likely that it will be. Her situation is becoming so dire, that it is quite clear that, in the not too distant future, she might not have a writing career at all – because, even if she is still willing to write (which may not be so), her publisher may be unwilling to publish any more of her books, because it is unable to make a profit from them.

Now, this situation is not hers alone. Most writers are affected, to varying degrees, by piracy. In her article, she commented darkly, that she had seen pirate site members enquiring as to when the next books from particular authors would be released – just so that they could pirate them. Her comments were dark because she knew, for certain, that those authors had had their publishing contracts CANCELLED owing to poor sales of their previous books. In other words, the much awaited books, that these downloaders wanted to pirate, would never be written and never be published. The pirates had killed the very thing they wished to steal – because they stole the earlier works. These pirates are ending the careers and livelihoods of authors and, what is more, they are preventing the creation of human culture – because, in a climate in which authors cannot make a living from their works, because those works are being stolen, writers will be unable to write, because they will be forced to do other things for a living – thus, the world’s supply of interesting new creative works, will dry up. Human culture will be dead – killed by the pirates.

It seems to me that there needs to be much more serious penalties for piracy than presently exist. If we are to have a thriving human culture, then the creators of cultural works – be they books, music, films or the like, must have protection from the predations of pirates. The penalties, therefore, need to be truly draconian – and need to be enforced.

It might seem harsh to suggest it, but since pirates are killing human culture and depriving us all of future works that will never be written, or created – be those works books, music or films etc. – then we should consider whether a mandatory death sentence might be appropriate for some categories of pirate – the most prolific or habitual ones (or perhaps even for all pirates) – and whether mandatory custodial sentences would be appropriate for less active pirates AND DOWNLOADERS. Yes. I am suggesting that anyone who downloads “Free” cultural works, be they books, films or music, should receive a mandatory custodial sentence, on being found out. I would also like to see fines amounting to thousands of times of the value of the stolen goods. Thus, for instance, if someone has downloaded a 10 dollar book, they should be fined 10,000 dollars or even 100,000 dollars  – for each and every such work they have downloaded off torrent sites. Furthermore, the quantum of monies raised from fines should be returned to the individual authors (or other creators) who were pirated. Were such policies instituted and enforced, we would soon see a great reduction in piracy and a return to profitability for creators of cultural works. Were this to be done, the future of human culture would be assured.

Yet, I very much doubt whether the world’s politicians will act. In general, politicians are not creative people. I don’t think they understand what it is to sit alone, in a room, writing a book for five years – only to have it stolen and downloaded a million times, whilst only selling 500 copies. I don’t think they understand the impact on future creative production of such a situation. They never consider unwritten books, uncomposed music and unshot films as something to think about. They don’t see that our culture is dying because of two factors: organized online piracy – and “SHARING” of ebooks, and music and the like. Both are forms of theft and both are killing human culture.

It needs to be universally understood and appreciated that, each and every time a cultural work is consumed, without having paid the creator for it, that a blow has been struck against all future creative production of that individual or company. Should there be too many such blows and too many people consuming the works for “free”, then there will be no more future books, music, or films. Quite simply, the downloaders and pirates will have killed the creator, as assuredly as if they had shot them. The reason this is so is because, if the creator cannot make a living for themselves and their families, from creating future works, they will be forced into another line of work – and will have NO TIME OR ENERGY LEFT TO CREATE ANYTHING ANYMORE – even if they had the heart to do so, knowing they would not be paid.

My thoughts turn again, to those pirate site members wondering when their “favourite author” was going to publish their next book – yet being completely oblivious to the fact that they had actually killed his career through their piracy of earlier works. There is something very sad and very dumb about that. Clearly the downloaders like the author’s work enough to be motivated to steal it (but not enough to pay for it) – yet in stealing it, they have destroyed him and prevented all future works from ever being published. How shortsighted is that?

The lesson here is simple: if you want a world in which new books are written, new music is composed and new films are shot – then don’t steal them, for “free”, off torrent sites – pay for them, each and every time. Every time anyone steals from a torrent site, they are taking a big step towards ending an author’s, a musician’s or a film-maker’s career. Do you really want a future without books, music or films? Do you really want a future without human culture? Then do what you can, to make sure people don't steal. Get them to pay for the works they enjoy and save human culture from the pirates.

Posted by Valentine Cawley

(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.

To read about my fundraising campaign, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-in-support-of-my.html and here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-first-donation.html

If you would like to read any of our scientific research papers, there are links to some of them, here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/02/research-papers-by-valentine-cawley-and.html

If you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here:http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.html

Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.

You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1

Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at:http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/

Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.) 

Tilda Swinton, Cornelia Parker and The Maybe

“The Maybe” was a work of art, supposedly by a collaboration of Tilda Swinton, the actress and Cornelia Parker, the artist. I say, “supposedly” because the truth of the matter is that the origin of this work lay outside the heads of both of these ladies.

In the early 1990s, I conceived a performance art work called Lord Valentine the Misplaced. This was an 18^th Century dandy, living in the 20^th Century world. I was fully attired in 18^th Century clothes and had old world airs and mannerisms. I took this work of living art, to both London and New York and it was eventually covered on CNN in 1994, NBC News in February 1995 and Reuters on 14^th February 1995. There was also coverage in the Observer newspaper in October or November 1994, and Time Out magazine, of London, in November 1994. Basically, it was quite a well known work, by the mid 1990s.

Now, an odd thing happened one night, in London. I was attired as Lord Valentine the Misplaced and was to meet a journalist (one Andrew Mosby from Time Out magazine, if I recall correctly), at Beach Blanket Babylon, a rather trendy and ornately decorated bar, in Notting Hill, West London. This was in November of 1994, after an article had come out about me, in Time Out.

As I entered Beach Blanket Babylon, I saw a familiar figure, her head laying on the shoulder of another woman: Tilda Swinton, the actress. I had seen her in person, several times before, but never really spoken to her. She had been pointed out to me, at Cambridge University, when I was there, many years before – since we both attended it, though she was rather older than me (still is!).

This pair were very interested in me. They appraised me with eager eyes, thinking thoughts that would later become clear. I did wonder at their closeness, since Tilda Swinton’s head was on the other lady’s shoulder. I did wonder at what kind of relationship they had. Then again, girls are often much more touchy-feely than guys.

Both studied my 18^th Century attire carefully.

I believe that Tilda Swinton introduced her friend as Cornelia, because she became so labeled in my mind, thereafter.

“What are you doing?”, one asked – I can’t remember which, though I think it was Tilda Swinton – “Are you trying to get cast?”

“No.”, I said, for my purpose was deeper than that. I didn’t explain what I was actually doing though.

The conversation was very brief, but there was something guarded about Tilda Swinton, at the end. She suddenly tugged at her friend to come away, a thought seeming to have come to her. I passed on, seeking my contact within.

It was the following year that Tilda Swinton and Cornelia Parker, collaborated on The Maybe. This was a simple piece of performance art/live art, in which Tilda Swinton slept in a glass box, in everyday ordinary clothes. Now, what I found immediately interesting about this was that it was a piece of living art – which is precisely what Lord Valentine the Misplaced was. I also thought it very interesting to note, from the pictures released at the time, that Cornelia Parker had been the lady with Tilda Swinton that night, in Beach Blanket Babylon. It was immediately obvious where the “inspiration” for this work of art had come from. I had created a piece of living art. Tilda Swinton and Cornelia Parker met me whilst I was being Lord Valentine the Misplaced – and Tilda Swinton (it seemed) had the idea of copying my idea and embodying herself as a living work of art, too. Particularly telling was the use of unattractive everyday clothes for The Maybe. Brian Sewell, the art critic, wondered why Tilda Swinton hadn’t dressed up as some kind of Sleeping Beauty (though maybe not in those words). It is clear why not. Had Tilda Swinton dressed up in any kind of beautiful period clothes, she would have revealed the inspiration for her work. She had no choice but to be in ordinary clothes, so as to obscure the original inspiration for the work.

Later on, Cornelia Parker and Tilda Swinton fell out over who “thought” of the Maybe. Both claim to have conceived the idea – though Tilda Swinton makes the louder claim that the idea was hers. It is very, very clear why this argument has arisen: because BOTH ladies met me, at the moment they decided to imitate what I was doing. The reason they can’t agree on who was responsible for thinking of it, is that NEITHER was responsible for the original thought. All they decided to do was to create a “me too” art work, based on my own prior explorations of living art. It is very telling that neither can agree on who conceived it, which indicates that they have something in common, at the moment of conception: that common point was the meeting of me as Lord Valentine the Misplaced. Had only one of them met me at that time, then only one of them would be laying claim to the idea. Their very argument points to the moment of contention: the instant they both met me, and one of them (or both of them) decided to imitate my work, in their own way.

Of course, the fact that they recognized my work as living art (implicitly, since they imitated it), does go to show the success of my work.

Cornelia Parker has gone on to produce other pieces of work, though Tilda Swinton hasn’t. Evidence of the influence of my work on Cornelia Parker can be seen in another of her proposed works. My art work was called Lord Valentine the Misplaced. Interestingly, Cornelia Parker wanted to put a meteorite back into space and used the term “misplaced” to describe this action – so the meteorite would now become a misplaced object. This seems to be a clear adaptation of the idea of misplacement as art. Lord Valentine the Misplaced, was misplaced in time – Cornelia Parker’s meteorite would have been misplaced in space. It is an analogy of my prior work.

We can see here, how Cornelia Parker conceives some of her works. They are adaptations or analogies to other people’s work. She is translating other people’s ideas into a different setting. Tilda Swinton’s The Maybe is a sleeping piece of living art, dressed in everyday clothes. Lord Valentine the Misplaced was a waking piece of living art, dressed in 18^th Century clothes. Cornelia Parker’s proposed meteorite project was a rock misplaced in space. My Lord Valentine project, was a human misplaced in time. These are both analogous to each other, adaptations of the same idea in a different context.

It is important that the true origins of the work of artists and supposed artists, like Cornelia Parker and Tilda Swinton – because the art, in these cases, lies in the idea, for they are conceptual works. If the idea is not truly theirs – as it is not, in both cases, here – then the work of art is not truly theirs either. The history of art is being defrauded if we are led to believe that the origin of these works lay in either of these ladies minds. The history of art deserves better than that. The true background to each conceived work should be known – and the “inspiration” that gave rise to them, should be appreciated.

This blog is but one page in an internet Universe of trillions of pages, thus, very few people will read it. So, please help spread the word about the origin of The Maybe, as an adaptation of the ideas behind Lord Valentine the Misplaced. Tell the story of how Tilda Swinton and Cornelia Parker met me at Beach Blanket Babylon in November 1994 and recognized the artistry in Lord Valentine the Misplaced, enough to want to steal it for themselves. If you have a blog, or other website, please post a link to this article, to help people become aware of it. Thank you.

Posted by Valentine Cawley

(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.

To read about my fundraising campaign, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-in-support-of-my.htmland here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-first-donation.html

If you would like to read any of our scientific research papers, there are links to some of them, here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/02/research-papers-by-valentine-cawley-and.html

If you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175

To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here:http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.html

Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.

You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1

Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at:http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/

Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

The cause of piracy in Malaysia.

There are pirates in Malaysia...lots of them. However, these pirates are not seafaring lads, with unaccountable eye patches - they are backroom boys with computer and video equipment turning out copies of software of all kinds, be it films, or computer games.

Before I went to Malaysia, I had puzzled at its reputation for pirated goods. Now, however, that I have lived in Malaysia for a while, it has become obvious to me why there is such a high rate of copyright infringement.

Last week, I went into a video store in KL and took a look at their DVDs. I was rather stunned at what I saw. The DVDs were typically priced at 149.99 RM each. To put this into perspective, the Sony DVD player that we had just bought, cost just 179 RM. So, a DVD in Malaysia is almost the price a good, branded DVD player. That struck me as appalling. I quietly left the DVD store without making any purchases.

Yesterday, I was in a computer store. I took a look for a game I had been contemplating for a while: Fallout 3. Again, I was struck by a sense of shock at the price: 189.99 RM. Again, this is much more expensive than expected and, indeed, is much more expensive than the game was, when it first came out in Singapore (where it has since become cheaper).

It is quite clear that the strongest motivation for people to buy pirated goods in Malaysia is that the genuine article is, typically, vastly overpriced. A pirated DVD costs around 8 RM (compared to 150 RM!!!). I hear that a pirated game costs about 15 RM, compared to close to 200 RM for the real thing.

Thus, it is clear that the reason piracy is common in Malaysia is that the manufacturers and distributors of software - film/games - are being too greedy. They are overpricing their goods compared to local standards, and, therefore, have made themselves entirely unaffordable to the common man. The common man therefore, seeks cheaper alternatives and, given a choice between not being able to buy something AT ALL (the original costs far too much), and buying a lower quality copy...they will ALWAYS go for the copy.

The answer to copyright infringement in Malaysia is strikingly obvious: the costs of original goods must be brought into line with the economic situation in Malaysia and must reflect what people are actually able to afford. That, to my mind, means dividing the price of DVDs and games by at least a factor of 3. Were manufacturers to do this, they wouldn't lose money, they would gain market share, as the common man started to buy original goods and prefer doing so, based on their quality (now that he could afford them).

Right now, however, original goods will sit unsold, and copies will sell quickly...because simple economics says that people in Malaysia have no other choice, realistically speaking. Almost no-one in Malaysia can afford these goods at the manufacturer's asking price.

So, if film-makers and computer games designers really want to make money in Malaysia (and other South-East Asian countries), they MUST cut the price of goods. Otherwise, they can just forget about making significant sales here.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals. If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

Some flattery is a crime.

Is it flattery, or a crime, to have one's work imitated? I am led to wonder this, recently, because I have learnt something that should give any creative teacher pause.

I once had the responsibility to teach a class of mainly Koreans (with a single Chinese student, too), oral English. There was no book to teach from, the school being of a mind not to source one. I was left, therefore, to my own devices and my own ideas. I had to devise a way to teach them oral English that would be stimulating and keep these very demanding young adults occupied. Therefore, I came up with my own approach to teaching that I had never seen used before, but which the students found most engaging. They became eager to attend classes and made great contributions to them. I had hit upon a success.

Anyway, without giving any details which might lead to more of what I was later to suffer, I continued teaching in this new way, with content of my own creation, for the entire duration of the course. Every lesson was in my own style, supported on my own thoughts. I reasoned that I was doing what was right, in the circumstances, given that I had not been provided with a course book, to bring out the best in the students. Indeed, they advanced very well in their spoken English and in other ways, too. They were growing more confident, more eloquent, more poised in their communication. I was pleased.

Yet, as I taught, someone in my class had other ideas than what I might have supposed. One Korean student saw my new teaching style as an opportunity. However, I did not find this out until too late.

I had given fully of myself, my thoughts, my ideas, my way of thinking. I had given the best that I could to the students. Imagine my surprise, therefore, when I learnt that one of my former students had decided to write a book, based on my teachings. She intended to capture my thought on paper, make a book out of it - and sell it under her own name, as her own work, back in Korea.

Perhaps, I should have suspected something when I asked them what their ambitions were. This particular student said that she wanted to be a journalist and to write books. She further said that she wished to be "globally famous" and that she wanted, at this time, to write a book that would "help people". Little did I know that the book that would "help people" was my book, as it were, being based on my thoughts.

Since finding this out, I have pointed out to her that the classes were my thoughts and I jokingly said she intended to "steal my ideas for a book". Her reaction was unrevealing. She just smiled and said nothing, apart from "Thank you".

I do not know whether she will actually finish writing the book. I do not know whether she will publish it. However, I know this: at this time, she intends to write a book firmly based on my way of teaching, for the purpose of capturing this way, on paper, so that it might "help people"...and to lay claim to it, for herself.

This situation should give all teachers pause. Is it fair to be open and creative, as a teacher, if the students are going to steal the lectures and claim the content as their own? Should any teacher, therefore, teach creatively, or should all teachers teach solely from the book? Should all creative teaching come to a halt?

I would like you to think about Richard P. Feynman. He wrote a series of books based on his own lectures in Physics, and published them. They are great books. They teach physics in what was, then, a new way. They are eminently readable. Rightly, Feynman got the credit for creating this teaching material and this approach. However, imagine if one of his students had published a book based on Feynman's lectures that captured the essence of them...what if such a student had sought credit for the origination of this material? We might now think of Feynman's lectures as student X's lectures.

Now my example is a little different from my own, because Feynman was very famous and could have successfully objected to his material being imitated and would have been able to effect a retraction of it. I am not really in Feynman's position, however. I am not sufficiently well known to have any power or influence, at this time, over people. My objections may not be listened to. This student of mine, may become famous and successful in Korea before I even hear what she has done. By then, it would be rather too late.

(Then again, if Richard P. Feynman had not published his lectures during his lifetime, a student could have done so after his death, and he would not have been around to influence the situation or object to it.)

The other issue is copyright. Copyright is a really weak protection of authors. So many authors get stolen from and cannot fight successfully for their work. Dan Brown, of the Da Vinci code, for instance, apparently copied at least two other books in writing his book. The imitations are very clear and obvious once pointed out. (They include blow by blow identities of plot, situation and character). One would have thought that they were unarguable. However, Dan Brown's superior lawyers and financial might, has enabled him to fend off copyright infringement suits from both wronged parties. I have no doubt, having seen the evidence, that Dan Brown is in the wrong...yet he won. The same applies to my situation. Her imitation will be clear, and obvious...but will I be able to establish it, in a court of law? She might be able to wriggle out of it and get away with a book based on my own work, as her "own".

So, I think teachers need to be cautious before their students. Teachers need, in fact, to hamper their own teaching, if they are to be protected from this kind of thing. There is a strong argument, therefore, that a teacher should never teach without a course book. The teacher should never be in a position of having to invent their own material every lesson. You see, as soon as a teacher begins to invent their own material, that material might be stolen by students who find it useful and turn it into books that could have been and should have been the teacher's.

I still don't know how this situation will turn out. However, I think this student will be in for a surprise regarding how much of a fuss I kick up, over this. I am not one to let another steal my work, without seeking redress, in a comprehensive way.

Every teacher should be free to be creative. In fact, everyone should be free to be creative, without fear of being plagiarized. There is a need for better copyright laws to make sure that this is so. The protection for creators needs to be strengthened and the penalties for infringement need to be heightened. Indeed, I would urge custodial sentences on copyright infringers. The penalties need to be strong enough to deter.

We will know the balance has been achieved, when Dan Brown is no longer one of the richest authors in the world and the people he "learnt from" are duly compensated.

That is the kind of world that would also protect any creative teacher from the kind of infringement I now face.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

Copyright infringement in Asia.

Copyright infringement in Asia is so common as to be the norm. It is, in some countries, in South East Asia, easier to find a fake item, than a real one. In Malaysia and Thailand, every item of kudos in the West, is found in cheap replica, there. Even in ever so clean Singapore, copied CDs and DVDs are not hard to find. It seems, in fact, that copyright theft is almost regarded as a right, by many businessmen.

Now, none of this surprises me, any longer. However, I was surprised, once, at what I saw in a Singaporean classroom. In a class of fourteen students, from China, and Korea, only three of them had official, legal, published copies of the course books. The other eleven had photocopied and bound, privately made editions. I found this most irritating when I noticed it. It irritated me because a lot of people had put a lot of work into making those course books - and they weren't going to see a single cent for their efforts.

What got me, in particular, about this act of theft on the part of the students was that it wouldn't save them much money. It would, perhaps, cost them half as much to steal the books, in this way, as to pay for them. Was it really necessary to go to all the effort to steal the books, at half the price? Why not pay the full price and get a real copy? The presentation and quality were much better for the real book - and no crime would have been committed.

Of course, stealing is a way of life for many of the students. Quite a few of them, for instance, try to "steal" marks, in exams, by cheating. (I have seen this frequently, myself.) I suppose stealing the books is just another aspect of their characters at work.

I wonder how much publishers lose through this particular student practice. Is it just restricted to Asia...or do students in other parts of the world do this, too? In this one class, only three sales were made and eleven copies were stolen. That seems to indicate that actual sales are but one fifth of potential sales, if this class is a typical one.

If anyone has observed this tendency to photocopy books wholesale, in other countries, please comment below.

Thanks.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

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Trading on another's success: Mr. Bean.

I noticed something surprising to me, yesterday. In Redhill, there is a shop selling soy milk products entitled: Mr. Bean. That should seem familiar to all who read this, but not because of this shop's success, but because of the origin of the name.

Is it right for a shop to name itself after an internationally recognized comic brand? Everyone the world over knows Mr. Bean: he is a character of universal fame, created by Rowan Atkinson. Yet, here, in sleepy Redhill, we have a shop boasting the same name. Curiously, they have a registered trademark symbol attached to the word Mr. Bean. So, if true, they have successfully registered someone else's name as their own. I puzzle at this. Did no-one in the trademarks and registry office notice that the name was the same as a famous, already existing one?

It gives a poor impression of Singapore's respect for copyrights and foreign trademarks, if a famous comic character can have its name stolen, locally, like this, with the official approval of the trademarks office. It gives the impression that, locally, any theft of identity and goodwill will be allowed, if only the right registry fees are paid.

Mr. Bean, to billions of people, is not a soy bean shop. Mr. Bean is a comic character. Yet, in using his name, the shop has won instant familiarity. Anyone seeing it will instantly feel that it is a familiar brand. They have, in effect, polejumped their way to being a household word, by stealing someone else's household word.

A more carefully regulated environment would not allow such an act of imitation. A more careful registry of trademarks office would have turned them down, for the very reason that they are obviously trading on someone else's name and reputation.

I wonder what the owners of Mr. Bean, the comic franchise would do if they learnt that a Singaporean company has taken their identity? Would they sue? Would the Mr. Bean shop go down burdened by massive legal costs? In a way, I would be happy to see it be so - for there is nothing worse, for a creator, than to see their creation used and abused by others.

I saw the Mr. Bean shop and I was thirsty - but I didn't go in for a drink. All I thought was: "That is so wrong." I rather hope that that is the thought of the majority and that they take a step back and consider what it means for a company to build its reputation on the fame of another. Does that seem a right thing to do?

Every time someone starts a company, it is an opportunity to be creative, to do something new - to build something that wasn't there before. This particular company, however, took the opportunity to capitalize on someone else's success, to build their brand by cannibalizing another. That, in some countries, would be seen as a crime of sorts. The question is: why is it not in Singapore, the squeakiest clean state of all?

Perhaps someone should ask them to change their name. Try something honest - virtually anything else will do. If they do so, I might even have a drink there - but I won't until the day they are not called Mr. Bean.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and four months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and nine months, and Tiarnan, twenty-six months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind, niño, gênio criança, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)