Cambridge Business Association
Overconnected
Book

Overconnected

The Promise and Threat of the Internet

William H. Davidow
Delphinium, 2011
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Editorial Rating

7

Qualities

  • Eye Opening

Recommendation

This original presentation covers the history, benefits, problems and possible solutions associated with the Internet’s expansion. Venture capitalist and author William Davidow is a Silicon Valley insider who convincingly argues that global interconnectivity greatly stresses political and economic institutions’ ability to police the Internet. His examples illustrate that recent economic crashes – as well as invasions of privacy, identity hacking and the proliferation of pornography – are all part of the Internet’s unregulated advance. Davidow warns that the Internet will impel bigger, more complex institutional breakdowns and economic manias, and that only increased government regulation can keep it in check. getAbstract recommends his cautionary report to those who study technology and those who use it.

Summary

Disruptive Networks

About 1.9 billion people used the Internet in 2010, making it the most effective communications mechanism in history. But the technology of this electronic communications process has developed so quickly, and people have become so interconnected that existing regulatory systems are overwhelmed. Pornographic materials, which are legal in California, are now available in Tennessee, where they are illegal. Residents of Texas, where online gambling is prohibited, can access legal gambling from England. Violations of individual privacy are on the rise, as is identity theft. In the 2000 technology bubble and the 2008 economic crisis, the Web facilitated the spread of rumors and bad information.

No one knows who governs cyberspace. Changes in tax laws, copyright laws, Internet gambling regulations and multiple legal jurisdictions confront governments and businesses. Economic and social institutions, and government policies must change to curb the unintended consequences of Internet “overconnectivity.” More rules and regulations can help prevent the rumors and “thought contagions” that deepened the 2008 economic crisis.

Railroads were the first example...

About the Author

William H. Davidow, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, is the author of Marketing High Technology, Total Customer Service and The Virtual Corporation.

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