Is Self-Ordering Occurring?

Consider the following indicators that many new mechanisms are developing in response to -- and succeeding in satisfying -- decentralized demand for order, trust, prevention of wrongdoing, and other public goods necessary for the growth of electronic commerce and community:

• Participation in the net is growing rapidly.
• Relatively little "real world" litigation results from net activity, relative to its scale.
• New forms of commerce and community are evolving.
• Harmful and obnoxious content must generally be sought out, and do not impinge unbidden.
• Participants of all types acknowledge that the net is a valuable place with special norms.
• The overall volume of theft, fraud, vandalism and other intentional harms is relatively low.
• Many standards bodies are continually improving net protocols in a thoughtful manner.
• Most governments agree that ecommerce will grow faster if they take a relatively hands off approach.
• Valuable content is being "assembled" for easy access via links from editorially enhanced search sites and directories.
• Trust levels appear adequate to allow rapid growth in transactions across the net.
• New labels and brands and other signals are proliferating rapidly.
• Participants on the net use increasingly diverse functions and visit increasingly diverse online places.
• Traditional value chains are being disrupted, suggesting that the net offers more valuable alternatives.
• Many clickwrap licenses now address choice of law and dispute resolution issues.
• Most people feel comfortable relying most of the time on the authenticity of incoming electronic messages.
• Software browsers are becoming more complex and deliver information regarding the security and authenticity of particular connections and online sites.
• A new language for automated negotiation of privacy preference contracts is developing.
• New forms of collaborative work and decision-making are evolving.
• Companies feel comfortable enough to invest substantial amounts in building and advertising web sites.