Naslov
Virtual networks in culture: between citizens and consumers

Autori
Uzelac, Aleksandra

Izvornik
Trans. Internet-Zeitschrift für Kulturwissenschaften (1560-182X) (2004), 15;

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
virtual networks; cultural sector; information society; public domain; civil society;

Sažetak
The fast development of the Internet and ICT sector in general is affecting the work of the cultural sector. There is a new context that cultural institutions must adapt to in the information society. ICT can enable new ways of working, but this is not achieved simply by applying new software, and cultural institutions must rely on strategies of the sector in general as well as on their own individual strategies. Legislation and especially copyright are crucial in determining what new services can be provided to users, and the commodification of culture could pose a threat to the free exchange and sharing of information and knowledge. Knowledge-sharing is what culture is all about, the and cultural field must ensure that the knowledge recorded in our cultural resources remains available to the public and serves as a source of inspiration for further creation. The cultural heritage sector, such as libraries, museums and archives, has always ensured open access to information and knowledge for the general public, and it forms an important infrastructure for knowledge preservation and dissemination in the information society. New possibilities, which were brought about by ICT, resulted in some new structures of cooperation, such as virtual networks or portals, that could give a stronger voice to small, independent players in culture and ensure the infrastructure through which they can be more visible. But this is still quite an early phase of their operation, and their further development will largely depend on imposed legislation and copyright laws in particular. A future shape of an information society depends largely on balance achieved between money-driven, for-profit initiatives and public domain services, which ensure that available knowledge can be used for the benefit of the citizens/users. This balance will determine whether we shall just be consumers of information or active citizens and contributors to the process of global communication and knowledge exchange.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Informacijske i komunikacijske znanosti

POVEZANOST RADA