Verified Document

Ruthless Overlords Of Silicon Valley Globalization According Essay

Ruthless Overlords of Silicon Valley Globalization

According to the article "The ruthless overlords of Silicon Valley," the corporate founders of the new digital age have tried to present themselves as benign leaders, more devoted to intellectual excellence and social good, rather than the ruthless pursuit of profits. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has said this directly: "simply put: we don't build services to make money; we make money to build better services" (The ruthless overlords of Silicon Valley, 2012, Newsweek). However, the authors of this Newsweek editorial state that this rhetoric is a facade for the actual agenda of organizations such as Google, Apple, Zynga and Facebook. The authors term these new Internet companies as just as unregulated and powerful in their influence over our lives as the robber barons of old. As an example of their profit-focused initiatives, Apple is taken to task for "systematically outsourcing the assembly of iPhones and other gadgets to contract manufacturers like China's Foxconn, [so] Apple has shaved its overall cost of production and plumped profit margins for shareholders" (The ruthless overlords of Silicon Valley, 2012, Newsweek). The authors also critique the muscle that Google and other companies used in...

However, given the sweeping and vague nature of the bill, faulting Silicon Valley for opposing the bill hardly seems fair. According to SOPA, "if an intellectual property rightsholder thinks a site is 'promoting' infringement, that party can go to court to seek an order forcing payment processors and ad services to choke off financial support to the site" even before a trial (McSherry 2012).
Throughout the article, the authors fault the companies for trying to make a profit. "Tellingly, big profit-driven sites like Google expressed sympathy but didn't go dark [protesting SOPA] -- while the notably nonprofit Wikipedia, which had no revenues to lose, did switch off in protest" (The ruthless overlords of Silicon Valley, 2012, Newsweek). If Google and Facebook did not make a profit, users could not enjoy their services. Is trying to merge the social good of spreading information across the globe and making the world smaller while still sustaining the profits of shareholders to be faulted? A more legitimate critique is the potential impingement of privacy of some users. However, the most egregious violation cited in the article…

Sources used in this document:
References

Characteristics of effective communication: 7Cs. (2008). MBA Notes. Retrieved:

http://www.mbanotesworld.in/2008/01/characteristic-of-effective.html

McSherry, Corinne. (2012). Proposed 'anti-piracy' legislation dangerous and unconstitutional.

US News & World Report. Retrieved: http://www.usnews.com/debate-club/should-congress-pass-anti-online-piracy-legislation/proposed-anti-piracy-legislation-dangerous-and-unconstitutional
Retrieved: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/03/16/148761812/this-american-life-retracts-mike-daiseys-apple-factory-story
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/03/11/the-robber-barons-of-silicon-valley.html
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Piracy Theft: In the Past
Words: 1003 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Nonetheless, based on the impact of pirating music, movies, and software, piracy can be considered as theft. The illegal copying and distribution of illegitimately copied material has huge financial impacts on the worldwide economy. As the rate of piracy continues to increase across the world, this practice continues to cost the global economy in billions of dollars. Piracy contributes to lost tax revenues that would be beneficial to local communities

Piracy/Copyright Protection the Music Industry
Words: 2058 Length: 6 Document Type: Research Paper

This education aims at stopping music piracy. Thirdly, there is the use of technology to stop piracy. This is quite difficult because the advancement in technology leads to advancement in the music piracy. However, knowledge in technology leads to the introduction and use of Digital Rights Management (DRM) systems. These systems limit the number of computer devices that can play a song. As a result, there is a reduction in

Piracy, Counterfeiting, Patent Violation, the Price You
Words: 7573 Length: 25 Document Type: Dissertation

Piracy, Counterfeiting, Patent Violation, The Price You Pay for Outsourcing China Piracy, Counterfeiting and Patent violation In this paper we will focus on piracy, counterfeiting and patent violation taking note of latest cases towards items such as in software, books, music and other related things. Here a huge emphasis will be given on China and how many different industries across the globe suffer losses due to the illegal practices carried out by

Piracy in the Video Game Market
Words: 982 Length: 4 Document Type: Term Paper

Piracy in the Video Game Market Sales of counterfeit video games are increasing worldwide. In 2003, video game executives joined a coalition of movie, software and music companies to appeal for help from the United States government, citing that they had lost a combined $20 billion due to piracy in 2002 (Kent, 2003). Video game piracy "is more than a $1 billion industry," according to Douglas Lowenstein, president of the Interactive Digital

Piracy Copyright Infringement
Words: 664 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Piracy and Copyright Infringement When people download music and movies illegally they are breaking federal law and they should be prosecuted. This paper backs up that thesis statement with reliable resource information and appropriate updates on the law and the consequences of copyright violation. Through it's student-centered "HelpDesk" Illinois State University (ISU) advises students enrolled in ISU classes that there are a number of companies offering streaming music for download legally (Shoutcast,

Piracy Somalia Resurgence of Piracy
Words: 335 Length: 1 Document Type: Term Paper

Somali clans have made a unified pledge to address the piracy problem. The Somalia government also signed a $50 million dollar contract late last year with a private company based in the United States to engage in coastal patrols. These measures were possible because of a recent agreement to bring peace to the region, signed by warring clan leaders. The contract was a relief to many, as "Somali businessmen

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now