by BIEN | Mar 16, 2018 | News
Credit to: The Blue Diamond Gallery.
Who does data belong to? As data becomes an even bigger part of society, it’s a very important question to ask. A lot of businesses collect their own data then go to someone like JustUnderstandingData, a data engineering consultancy, to help them utilize it. Other companies buy data from web scrapers that collect as much data as possible. And some, unfortunately, access data in morally questionable ways. At an individual level, a lot of consumers don’t know how to restrict what data gets shared with third parties whereas others take their privacy very seriously. Would it be possible for all of us to receive monetary compensation for what we put on the internet? These questions lead to additional questions regarding the latest tendencies in data mining and management related to Universal Basic Income (UBI).
Eduardo Porter in the New York Times talked about data in the Robotic Age and posed such a question, “Shouldn’t we be paid for it?” (Our data being placed on the web.)
Porter notes that 1.4 billion people use Facebook on a daily basis. He opines in amazement that we are not paid for any of the data we share. Interestingly, if people were paid for their data, Porter argues that the quality of the data would increase because it would no longer be free. If the switch to data-for-pay were to take place, he claims there would be difficulties putting systems in place in order to put a value on information. This could challenge the dominance of Google, Amazon, Apple, and other information giants.
Jaron Lanier founded a proposal in 2013 with his book Who Owns the Future? to have companies pay transparently for any information users place online. Porter mentions this could undermine the “stranglehold” on the future of technology by the “data titans.” Lanier’s bold proposal remains relevant now into 2018. According to Politico, the European Commission generated a report in February 2018 that proposed a tax on the revenue earned by digital companies, which would be based on their location.
Basic Income News has previously reported on proposals and news about the funding of basic income through data mining. Ex-CIA officer, Bryan Wright, made the proposal for UBI funded by data as well.
More information at:
Eduardo Porter, “Your Data Is Crucial to a Robotic Age. Shouldn’t You Be Paid for It?“, The New York Times, March 6th 2018
Janet Maslin, “Fighting Words Against Big Data”, The New York Times, May 5th 2013
Kate McFarland, “UNITED STATES: Ex-CIA officer Bryan Wright proposes data mining royalties”, Basic Income News, May 27th 2016
Craig Rhodes, “Funding basic income through data mining”, Basic Income News, January 29th 2017
by Guest Contributor | Jan 29, 2017 | Opinion
Written by: Craig Rhodes
We are fast entering an era in which there’s going to be a chronic shortage of jobs for millions looking for employment. That trend is only going to accelerate. Everyone’s job is on the line now. If we don’t begin to address this problem, then we will suffer long-term consequences: mass unemployment and political alienation of millions because jobs are fast disappearing mainly due to automation.
My suggestion is strategic not tactical. The details can be worked out in committee negotiations.
Corporations are mining nearly every piece of online data that we as individuals produce and then selling it to the highest bidders including the NSA for hundreds of billions per year. To find out how to protect yourself from this visit websafetyadvice.com.
It’s an unregulated modern day gold rush happening under our very noses without notice. We as individuals should be compensated for our data in the same way that corporations are compensated for their data. Copyright law should protect us in the same way it protects corporations. Terms of Service Agreements should be outlawed. Copyright laws should be amended or rewritten.
There’s a reason Google and Facebook do not bill us. We’re not their consumers — we’re their product. The lion’s share of profits made by Google, Facebook, AT&T, Verizon, and scores of other corporations are from the data we produce. Facebook’s billion plus users are the largest unpaid workforce in history.
If a corporation profits from our data, whether it be browsing history, emails, buying habits, contact lists etc. then they should have to pay us for it just as we must pay for their movies, music, software and more. Such compensation might go a long way toward alleviating our chronic employment problems as well as help the working class who are losing jobs faster than any other demographic. It would not be welfare nor would it involve raising taxes. It would be payment for services rendered in the form of a subsistent guaranteed income similar to the Alaskan model.
Manufacturing jobs are not going to come back. And in time automation will begin to affect the professional class as well. Those who depended on such jobs should be dealt with or our nation is going to suffer catastrophic consequences.
This and many more initiatives should be included in a robust strategy. We must be bold.
About the author: Craig Rhodes is a retired art teacher after 34 yrs. Active in politics since an early age. Rhodes held elective office. Lifelong gardener, musician, environmentalist, avid reader of all subjects both non fiction and fiction, potter, portrait artist, and more. Rhodes is active on any number of social media including Facebook and have been surfing the internet since it first appeared on the scene as the Arpnet under DARPA.
