The world loves its iPods, iPhones, TiVo, OnStar, XBox and Blackberries. They all run off the Internet. But the Internet was built — and built out — in the age of the personal computer, when anyone could climb on and tinker from their keyboard.
That openness — almost anarchy — made the Net a wide-open realm for innovation. Its dream was liberating everything from data to democracy.
Now, web guru Jonathan Zittrain worries that hyper-convenient but closed products like the iPhone are shutting down the party.
This hour, On Point: The gadgets we love, and the future of the Internet.
-Tom Ashbrook
Guests:
Jonathan Zittrain, author of “The Future of the Internet — and How to Stop It,” professor of Internet Governance and Regulation at Oxford University, and co-founder of Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society.
Adam Thierer, Director of the Progress and Freedom Foundation’s Center for Digital Media Freedom.
Jay Greene, Seattle bureau chief for BusinessWeek magazine and author of this week’s cover story, “Inside Microsoft’s War Against Google.”
Tags: gadgets, Internet, technology
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