>>Jean-Philippe Vergne: All these organizations
were challenged, sometimes very violently,
by pirate organizations.
The VOC was attacked constantly by all the
Blackbeards and all the Johnny Depps of the
high seas in the 17th century.
The BBC was attacked by pirate radio.
AT&T was attacked by hackers.
And the National Institutes of Health are
now facing attacks by bio pirates that are
manipulating DNA in a way that is judged illegitimate.
Actually, these pirate organizations always
appear in a systematic fashion every time
capitalism expands on new territories.
And what they claim is a different way of
setting the rules.
Setting the norms of exchange on these territories.
They want decentralized control.
They want these territories to be recognized
a common good of mankind.
This is the claims that they are making, these
pirates.
So why am I telling you all this?
Because it says something about the way innovation
works in capitalist societies.
Paragraph every time capitalism expands to
new territories, these territories need rules.
And there are two types of organizations that
struggle to define the rules.
State organizations, governments; and pirate
organizations.
And out of this struggle comes a new set of
rules.
But you need to think as business leaders
where you stand.
If you are operating on these new territories,
you need to think with whom you need to ally
or not ally.
You need to take the long view.
You need to see the broader picture.
Because a lot of innovation in the industries
that are rooted in these territories come
from pirate organizations.
