ABSTRACT
It is time to reflect on whether and how the proposals developed in this book can attract a critical mass of support. The last few years have seen a subtle but significant evolution. Proposals for a flat-rate financing of culture and the recognition of file sharing first arose as a reaction against repressive laws. Geographically, they followed the world-wide dissemination of these laws, which was co-ordinated by a few interest groups such as the International Chamber of Commerce or specialized media interest groups. 1 Flat-rate proposals were made in response to DRM anti-circumvention laws, then to “three-strikes and you are out of the Internet” laws, and now to the present generation of laws requiring the compulsory filtering of sites. This process is still at work, but another agenda is developing: the financing of sharing-compatible digital creativity is seen as a goal in and of itself. This approach was present from the start, but less visible. In this concluding chapter, we outline the trajectories along which this autonomous agenda is unfolding. These paths will cross and part, blend and diversify, with unpredictable results. But they all have a role to play in laying the foundations for a sustainable digital cultural ecosystem, and making it a reality.
