Can information be sold and bought?

Posted Friday, May 12th 2006

Information is defined by Dictionary.com as several things, including knowledge derived from study, a collection of facts & data, and so on. We have all heard the sayings that information equals power, or that information equals profit, but in reality, can information really be sold and bought?

A few evenings ago, me and a couple of friends from my group at uni, sat down after classes to have some beer, and being the egoistic, self-righteous twats that we are, we engaged in a heated discussion on several topics, including whether information can be sold and bought.

On one hand, it is easy to assume that information can be bought. In todays world, information is a commodity, and life has taught us that commodities can be sold, traded, or even given away for free. But information is not a physical, tangible item. It is a mental “entity”, and as such, its ownership can’t really be transferred from one party to another. Mind you, we are not talking about intellectual property here.

For example: I have a simple water glass. I sell it to someone, and thus, I do not have ownership of the glass anymore. The glass has been sold to another person, and thus, I am no longer in possession of it. However, with information, it’s somewhat different. For example, I know that a certain car manufacturer is working on a new model. I sell that knowledge to another manufacturer for a price, however, I have simply passed on the information (for a price), but I haven’t exactly given the buyer the information. Just because the buyer has the information now, it does not mean that I do not have it anymore. It’s still in my head.

Ultimately, I believe that information, can not be sold or bought. The means to access the information can though, and this is where most of the confusion stems from. Information can not be a product per se, but the service (in this case, accessing the information, through some means) can be offered for a price.

Food for thought? I think so.

Posted in Personal | Trackback | Leave a Comment »