Weapons of mass collaboration

Wikinomics
Tapscott & Williams (2008)
Chapter 1

It's provoking to read about critics (for example Bill Gates) to Wikinomics - with its focus on sharing intellectual property - that it's closely related to communism and thus prevents companies from making a profit. Other critics point out that wikinomics like Myspace, Wikipedia, Flickr, Youtube etc exploits unpaid volunteers.

The concept of sharing and collaborating, working together with the shared result as the core and not to put the individual person in center makes me relate to Eastern vs. Western perspective on a person in the community. The Eastern way has been to put the individual in the backseat and let the shared effort of many be in center, whereas the Western "philosophy" has been to put the individual in focus and not the community. The concept of wikinomics flips the whole perspective for the Western world and scares the hell out of CEO's in it for the money.

The truth is that the majority of those who participate in peer production creating these wikinomics is in it for other reasons than making a monetary profit. At least not in short terms. We are first and foremost profiting by expanding network and spreading the knowledge. A lot of participators find it as mere fun to be part of a great product and profits from a richer web. In the long run participating is for many, an entry gate to upcoming careers.

Instead of closed companies who hold on to all information secretly, companies and organisations who open up becomes enriched of employees and customers who feel more trust in these organisations. This trust lowers costs, stimulates innovation and creates loyalty. As the authors point out, as an answer to critics, contributing to the commons is often the best way to build vibrant business ecosystems that harness a shared foundation of technology and knowledge to accelerate growth and innovation.