[5957] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
Re: Digital Contracts: "Lie in X.509, Go to Jail"
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Robert Hettinga)
Wed Oct 20 11:29:08 1999
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Date: Wed, 20 Oct 1999 10:59:06 -0400
To: Arnold Reinhold <reinhold@world.std.com>
From: Robert Hettinga <rah@shipwright.com>
Cc: Ryan Lackey <ryan@venona.com>, Richard Lethin <lethin@reservoir.com>,
brands@xs4all.nl, dcsb@ai.mit.edu, cypherpunks@cyberpass.net,
cryptography@c2.net, Digital Bearer Settlement List <dbs@philodox.com>,
micropay@ai.mit.edu, micropayments@elab.co.uk
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At 10:35 AM -0400 on 10/20/99, Arnold Reinhold wrote:
> No. The complexity of international distribution agreements and
>general stupidity are much bigger factors than cash settlement
>costs. Two of my books are translated into Spanish. The US is the
>second largest Spanish speaking market in the world. Can I get the
>Spanish editions distributed here? No way!
Fortunately, (the now-)Dr. Brands holds his copyrights, and the book
was, apparently, only printed, not published. :-).
So, if there were a form of bearer microcash settlement, he could
sell the book over the web on a pay-per-pageview basis if he wanted
to. I'm sure there are several once and future cypherpunks who, by
then, would be in the <whatever>-to-guilder currency exchange
business and would happily oblige.
What this does to the publishing business is, in the above example,
not particularly Dr. Brands' problem. :-).
Cheers,
RAH
-----------------
Robert A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
