I guess I’d have to take that into account. The hypothetical then would be how much you’d pay for a book you could only read once (you pay each time you read) and an album you can only hear once (pay each time you listen). My point was just exploring what kind of exchanges would result from that; and actually, I think the idea of paying for something – both reading and listening – for each time you experience it may not be that far off. Stephen King did it with some shorts too.
Which leaves the question of what’s the most moral type of transaction open, I guess; and, of course, the morality of royalties without new labor of some kind expended each time by the recipient in support of generating that new income.
Ah, but what is the morality of the publisher getting extra money each time the factory turns the crank and spits out another DVD or book? About the same as the writer getting some money, I’d say. I think I agree with those who say this isn’t a moral issue.
The morality might be that it takes labor to crank out another DVD or book along with all the attendant costs of maintaining a going enterprise and employees.
The author, by contrast, does precisely nothing whatsoever to cause that new income to be generated. No overhead, in other words.
