A few weeks ago I wrote about coffeehouses in the context of Pepys’ Diary and Stephenson’s Quicksilver, making a couple hamfisted allusions to them being “nodes in London’s information networks” as with their contemporary wifi-ed equivalents. With serendipity (I assume!), The Economist wrote a lengthier, better article on the same subject in their excellent Christmas special, even ending on a firm suggestion as to the appropriate economic model underpinning today’s equivalent i.e information wants to be free! Here’s a couple of choice quotes:
“Where do you go when you want to know the latest business news, follow commodity prices, keep up with political gossip, find out what others think of a new book, or stay abreast of the latest scientific and technological developments? Today, the answer is obvious: you log on to the internet. Three centuries ago, the answer was just as easy: you went to a coffee-house. There, for the price of a cup of coffee, you could read the latest pamphlets, catch up on news and gossip, attend scientific lectures, strike business deals, or chat with like-minded people about literature or politics. The coffee-houses that sprang up across Europe, starting around 1650, functioned as information exchanges for writers, politicians, businessmen and scientists. Like today’s websites, weblogs and discussion boards, coffee-houses were lively and often unreliable sources of information that typically specialised in a particular topic or political viewpoint.”
“(Today’s) hotspots allow laptop-toting customers to check their e-mail and read the news as they sip their lattes. But history provides a cautionary tale for those hotspot operators that charge for access. Coffee-houses used to charge for coffee, but gave away access to reading materials. Many coffee-shops are now following the same model, which could undermine the prospects for fee-based hotspots. Information, both in the 17th century and today, wants to be free—and coffee-drinking customers, it seems, expect it to be.”
The Economist: The internet in a cup
[Also clocked by Ben Hammersley]
Dan, you might like Charlie Stross‘s story ‘Extracts from the Club Diary’ in his Toast collection. Coffee as a social glue across a 100+-year period, and as a catalyst for innovation.
Tea Shops, Blogs and the World Disclosed
Several blogs have commented on a recent Economist piece about coffee shops in London. Not the contemporary chains but the highly differentiated ‘penny universities’ that sprung up during the 17th and 18th centuries. Dan Hill picks up on the role…
From Coffee to Indian Tea to Blof
Ideas Bazaar have picked up on the Economist Article about coffee shops too in their post. Weblog: Tea Shops, Blogs and the World Disclosed It’s a much more sophisticated look at things than my post, taking into account both tea…
From Coffee to Indian Tea to Blog
Ideas Bazaar have picked up on the Economist Article about coffee shops too in their post. Weblog: Tea Shops, Blogs and the World Disclosed It’s a much more sophisticated look at things than my post, taking into account both tea…
Links originally sent to this post from other sites (before I turned trackbacks off due to spam)
» Tea Shops, Blogs and the World Disclosed from The Ideas Bazaar
Several blogs have commented on a recent Economist piece about coffee shops in London. Not the contemporary chains but the highly differentiated ‘penny universities’ that sprung up during the 17th and 18th centuries. Dan Hill picks up on the role… [Read More]
» From Coffee to Indian Tea to Blog from Monkeymagic
Ideas Bazaar have picked up on the Economist Article about coffee shops too in their post. Weblog: Tea Shops, Blogs and the World Disclosed It’s a much more sophisticated look at things than my post, taking into account both tea… [Read More]