Kevin Rose Hands Over Digg Control

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2007 by Andy Beal

Kevin Rose Hands Over Digg Control

If you read our coverage of the Digg revolt yesterday, you already know that users were fighting Digg’s decision to remove a story that contained a decryption code for HD-DVDs.

Well, the revolution continued and Digg users effectively took control of Digg, saturating the service with many posts that contained the same decryption number. Digg became unusable and co-founder Kevin Rose saw his mega-social bookmarking site start to crumble before his eyes. Rose was left with a tough decision – prevent potential legal action, by removing the code, or, let Digg users have their way and suffer the consequences.

Talk about a tough call. If Digg insisted on removing the code, its users would have likely continued their revolt and eventually may have abandoned Digg for another service – leaving Digg in ruins. If Digg acquiesced to its users, and let them keep the code on the site, it not only faced potential legal action, but the illusion that it controlled Digg would be shattered and the little people would realize they owned Digg.

Rose’s Concession

Rose chose to concede and posted this message to his blog.

In building and shaping the site Iâ€™ve always tried to stay as hands on as possible. Weâ€™ve always given site moderation (digging/burying) power to the community. Occasionally we step in to remove stories that violate our terms of use (eg. linking to pornography, illegal downloads, racial hate sites, etc.). So today was a difficult day for us. We had to decide whether to remove stories containing a single code based on a cease and desist declaration. We had to make a call, and in our desire to avoid a scenario where Digg would be interrupted or shut down, we decided to comply and remove the stories with the code.

But now, after seeing hundreds of stories and reading thousands of comments, youâ€™ve made it clear. Youâ€™d rather see Digg go down fighting than bow down to a bigger company. We hear you, and effective immediately we wonâ€™t delete stories or comments containing the code and will deal with whatever the consequences might be.
If we lose, then what the hell, at least we died trying.

Any Legal Worries?

It’s not actually clear whether or not Digg will face any legal action for displaying the decryption code. Danny Sullivan attempts to explain the DMCA’s anti-circumvention provisions and concludes:

Publishing instructions rather than actual devices does not seem to be a violation of this particular part of the DMCA, to my non-legal but common sense eyes. Frankly, the AACS seems to be stretching those provisions to suggest that simply writing about how to override copyright protection is a violation of the DMCA, one that might require information to be taken off the web.

Age of Digg Enlightenment

In fact, Digg’s biggest challenge is not likely to be any legal action regarding the publishing of this code. What it must now accept is that it has effectively lost control of Digg – if it even had control to start with. Digg users have discovered they have power in numbers. They’ve discovered that without their support, Digg is indeed a ship without an engine. They’ve realized that it’s their support that helps Digg find advertisers and make money. Now that they’ve tasted the sweet nectar of enlightenment, Rose’s biggest challenge is making sure they don’t use their power like this again.

Indeed, what does this say about Digg’s future? Will it be able to raise more funding, find new advertisers, or get acquired, now that it has been exposed as, not a company run by some smart entrepreneurs, but a living, breathing social network that is run by its members.

Code Back on Digg

As of this morning, the code is back on the homepage of Digg, with Rose’s own post receiving more than 16,000 Diggs.

What’s next?

Many things can happen from here…

This whole mess has created a lot of publicity for Digg. It has demonstrated how powerful it is and how influential the voice of its users. Empowered by their new sense of strength, Digg users may well become even more loyal and active on Digg, driving the site to new heights of success.
Digg users may also start testing Digg’s management repeatedly, trying to get their own way. It’s one thing to listen to the voice of your community, but they’re not running the show – the Digg management is. If Kevin Rose et al can’t find a way to balance their control of the company, with the new found strength of Digg’s users, the company could collapse in the confusion.
Digg could still actually find itself subject to legal action for displaying the code. It will have no choice but to either fight it, or face the wrath of its users. Fighting costs money, distracts the management and, if they lose, could be the end of the community. Not fighting will likely severely anger Digg’s users and could cause either another revolt or a mass exodus of supporters, as they look for a new home.

There are no doubt lots of scenarios that could take place. I’d love to hear what you think will happen next.

Social Media Monitoring in Just 60-Seconds. Guaranteed!

Similar Stories in: General | Forward: Email This Post

Share this post

22 comments on “Kevin Rose Hands Over Digg Control”

Online Marketing Mix Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:00 am

I agree with your comments, it’s a sticky situation for Digg and it could put them in hot water.

We are stating to see social Web 2.0 sites evolve where the members understand their power to influence and are making their voice heard through actions.

Will be interesting to see how this pans out.
More Coverage of Revolt Against Digg at Think Search Engines // Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:19 am

[...] More Coverage of Revolt Against Digg from: SERoundtable.com, Search Engine Land,Â Graywolf’s SEO Blog, Marketing Pilgrim, and Pronet Advertising. [...]
HMTKSteve Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:32 am

It is very interesting that Kevin chose to use the code as the title of his blog entry. By doing so he posted the code directly to Digg’s servers as a company man!

That one act may have launched the Digg ship out of it’s safe harbor.
Why The Digg Revolt Really Doesn’t Surprise Me Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:36 am

[...] Digg users act like a mob of screaming children everywhere else on the Internet… why wouldn’t they turn on the hand that feeds them and attack Digg itself? As some have pointed out, by backing down, Kevin Rose and company have set a bad precedent and all but told this mob that they – not the management – are running the site. The revolt succeeded not only in that the code was allowed back on the site, but also in that it put the people behind Digg in their place. [...]
SEOrefugee Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:45 am

The winds have changed today. Digg is now one big happy place again. All Kevin had to do was say he was sorry. Nevermind the fact that he made the decision to censor in the first place. People are once again praising him despite the fact that he has obviously forgotten where he came from (podcasts on hacking stuff). His “Digg On” post is at the top of the site and has over 17,000 diggs now. That’s sure a quick turnaround time for such an angry revolt that people supposedly cared so much about.
Andy Beal Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 10:49 am

@HMTKSteve – good point. Before could have at least claimed it was submitted by someone external. That defense is gone.
vanr23 Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 11:12 am

It also demonstrates the stupidity of trying to censor an integer.
Is Digg Out of Control? After Giving In, Can Kevin Ever Regain Control? Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 11:28 am

[...] Indeed, what does this say about Diggâ€™s future? Will it be able to raise more funding, find new advertisers, or get acquired, now that it has been exposed as, not a company run by some smart entrepreneurs, but a living, breathing social network that is run by its members. Source: Kevin Rose Hands Over Digg Control [...]
Ding Dong Digg is Dead | SoloSEO Blog Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 11:48 am

[...] There have been many discussions over the recent problems at Digg, Andy of Marketing Pilgrim, Muhammad of Pronet, and Michael of Wolf-Holf have all commented. I have made my less than glowing opinion of Digg known in a previous post. In gerneral, I don’t find the articles typically found on the front page of Digg to be of any particular use to anyone over the age of 20, or with interests outside video games and the latest hack. There are some which claim the traffic Diggers can drive to your site is worth pandering to the Digg clique, but I have never agreed. The traffice is short-lived, and Diggers don’t buy. [...]
Stephen Ward Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 3:02 pm

“…and the little people would realize they owned Digg.”

Ah, the democratic process at its purest, when the citizens realize they have control of the government and exercise that control. It kind of makes me wonder how many problems could be solved (or caused) if more Americans voted.

Seriously, though, I wouldn’t worry about seeing too much of this “management en masse” in the future. After all, if politics is any indication, it can be pretty hard to motivate a lot of people to action. In this case, it must’ve just hit a nerve.
AnvÃ¤ndarrevolt pÃ¥ Digg - missa inte | OOZ Webb 2.0 och Teknik - Stefan Svensson Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 3:32 pm

[...] Marketing Pilgrim [...]
Joe Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 6:33 pm

It is important to note that not all diggers reacted with the same teenage basement mutiny mentality:
http://www.paydayloanaffiliate.com/blog/DiggersVsDigg.aspx
rick gregory Says:

May 2nd, 2007 at 7:06 pm

Rose should have sold while he could – he’s just revealed that the company has no assets. After all, if you can’t control your own site… what do you have? The second Rose does something people don’t like, they whine. Keep it up and they’ll leave. A social platform is trivial to create – the community is all… and if they are fickle and will revolt at the drop of a hat, you don’t have them.

As for cries of censorship, all of these people whining about Rose censoring them are free to post it… on their site.
At Digg, The Inmates Now Run The Asylum - TheVanBlog Says:

May 3rd, 2007 at 12:28 am

[...] This event is a significant moment in the life of Digg, though it’s still a little early to know what that significance will be. Andy Beal is right when he said Kevin Rose had a difficult decision to make, though in the end Kevin handed over control of Digg to the community. Andy sees many possible outcomes and mentions three. [...]
Mayday, mayday! The tale of Diggâ€™s perfect storm and the pirate captain Kevin Rose Says:

May 3rd, 2007 at 12:36 am

[...] Andy Beal ponders about where things will go from here. I think that the community will become even more loyal to Digg. Kevin Rose has his street cred back, but I think that he’s going to try to implement some “new features” to try to make this kind of mutiny much harder to pull off. [...]
mblair Says:

May 3rd, 2007 at 2:14 am

I expect a few subtle changes to the feature down the road now that Kevin Rose has pretty much had his whole site buried for an evening.
Clickfire Blog » Has Digg Dugg it’s own Grave? Questions for Kevin Rose Says:

May 10th, 2007 at 12:52 am

[...] Update: Some good and lengthier discussion of the recent Digg phenomena comes from bloggers Mark BlairÂ of SMOBlog and Andy BealÂ of Marketing Pilgrim. These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
Digg is Sending Lowest Referral Traffic in 1.5 Years-- Search Engine Optimization Says:

May 14th, 2007 at 9:53 pm

[...] My best guess is that the HD-DVD fiasco had a negative impact on Digg’s regular readers. As noted in this Reddit thread, a gaggle of some size moved to that site, while some other posts suggest that general site abandonment over the issue was rampant. This doesn’t put any kind of nail in the coffin, but it’s more evidence that Digg has lost some of its traffic. [...]
Seo Mumbai » Has Digg Dugg itâ€™s own Grave? Questions for Kevin Rose Says:

May 23rd, 2007 at 9:04 pm

[...] Update: Some good and lengthier discussion of the recent Digg phenomena comes from bloggers Mark BlairÂ of SMOBlog and Andy BealÂ of Marketing Pilgrim. [...]
Has Digg Dugg itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s own Grave? Questions for Kevin Rose | Search Engine Optimization India Says:

June 12th, 2007 at 12:40 pm

[...] Update: Some good and lengthier discussion of the recent Digg phenomena comes from bloggers Mark BlairÃ‚Â of SMOBlog and Andy BealÃ‚Â of Marketing Pilgrim. [...]
At Digg, The Inmates Now Run The Asylum | TheVanBlog Says:

January 30th, 2008 at 10:04 pm

[...] Beal is right when he said Kevin Rose had a difficult decision to make, though in the end Kevin handed over control of Digg to the community. Andy sees many possible outcomes and mentions [...]
Is Digg Out of Control? After Giving In, Can Kevin Ever Regain Control? | Tips Dr.com Says:

January 18th, 2009 at 4:06 am

[...] Indeed, what does this say about Digg?s future? Will it be able to raise more funding, find new advertisers, or get acquired, now that it has been exposed as, not a company run by some smart entrepreneurs, but a living, breathing social network that is run by its members. Source: Kevin Rose Hands Over Digg Control [...]