"Digital clouds will be either commercial, social or public."
Charles Leadbeater gives a classification of digital clouds. And the growth of these clouds creates the possibility of what he calls "Cloud Culture" which could lead, he says, to "Exponential growth in mass cultural expression". And all of this culture could be / should be
a rare and delicate mix: more decentralised, plural and collaborative; less hierarchical, proprietary and money driven; the boundaries between amateur and professional, consumer and producer, grassroots and mainstream are breached, if not erased.
Yet, he is not blind to the other possibility, pointed out by Evgeny Morozov--the fact that authoritarian governments can also make use of the cloud.
Leadbeater is "hopeful but realistic," as much as it is possible to be about the unfolding future, but the truth remains to be seen.
