--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Obscurity is a far greater threat to…" description: "\"Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.\" — Tim O'Reilly" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png" --- # Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative… ![“Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.” quote by Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png) > “Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.” [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Obscurity prevents creators from finding audience, which is more damaging than loss from piracy. **In simple terms:** Being unknown hurts more than being copied. Key Takeaway Focus on visibility and audience building. Themes creativity recognition risk authorship Mood concerned determined Type advisory strategic When to use this quote - marketing campaigns - social media presence - collaborations - public readings - online portfolios Key Concepts visibility network effects intellectual property Questions to Reflect On - How can creators balance exposure with monetization? - What platforms best amplify niche voices? A Different Perspective Even with visibility, financial sustainability may remain challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artists Piracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artists-piracy-3460086/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Greater Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greater-threat-1082201/) [Obscurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscurity/) [Obscurity Far](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obscurity-far-3460087/) [Piracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piracy/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) [Threat Authors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat-authors-3460088/) ## Related quotes > [The problem for most artists isn't piracy, it's obscurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/the-problem-for-most-artists-isn-t-piracy-it-s-obscurity/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Obscurity is a bigger problem for authors than piracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-bigger-problem-for-authors-than-piracy/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [“my problem isn’t piracy, it’s obscurity”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/my-problem-isn-t-piracy-it-s-obscurity/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [Piracy is not the problem, obscurity is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/piracy-is-not-the-problem-obscurity-is/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [The big problem isn’t piracy, it’s obscurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/the-big-problem-isn-t-piracy-it-s-obscurity/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [If you are extremely well known and have a very desirable product, then yes, you probably do suffer a bit from piracy, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/if-you-are-extremely-well-known-and-have-a-very-desirable-product/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Large-scale hog producers are a greater threat to the United States and U.S. democracy than Osama bin Laden and his terrorist network.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-f-kennedy-jr/large-scale-hog-producers-are-a-greater-threat-to-the-united-states/) [Robert F. Kennedy, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-f-kennedy-jr/) > [Climate change poses a far greater threat to the outdoor industry than even the privatization of the public lands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-bleiler/climate-change-poses-a-far-greater-threat-to-the-outdoor-industry/) [Gretchen Bleiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-bleiler/) > [ The computer is a greater threat to the \[nuclear\] family than all the abortion laws and gay rights movements and pornography in the world. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-toffler/the-computer-is-a-greater-threat-to-the-nuclear-family-than-all-the/) [Alvin Toffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-toffler/) > [The state always poses a greater threat to society than whatever problem it purports to solve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/llewellyn-rockwell/the-state-always-poses-a-greater-threat-to-society-than-whatever/) [Llewellyn Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/llewellyn-rockwell/) > [There is no greater threat to America than Islam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-g-boykin/there-is-no-greater-threat-to-america-than-islam/) [William G. Boykin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-g-boykin/) > [These are dark times, there is no denying. Our world has perhaps faced no greater threat than it does today. But I say this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/these-are-dark-times-there-is-no-denying-our-world-has-perhaps-faced/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No challenge poses a greater threat to future generations than climate change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/no-challenge-poses-a-greater-threat-to-future-generations-than/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Silence can pose a greater threat than the difficult truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-lerner/silence-can-pose-a-greater-threat-than-the-difficult-truth/) [Harriet Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-lerner/) > [Heavy as they are, the costs of action must be weighed against the price of inaction. If Saddam defies the world and we fail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/heavy-as-they-are-the-costs-of-action-must-be-weighed-against-the/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## More by Tim O'Reilly > [Empowerment of individuals is a key part of what makes open source work, since in the end, innovations tend to come from small groups,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/empowerment-of-individuals-is-a-key-part-of-what-makes-open-source/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [In social networks, you gain and bestow status through those you associate with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/in-social-networks-you-gain-and-bestow-status-through-those-you/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Programming is how we talk to the machines that are increasingly woven into our lives. If you aren't a programmer, you're like one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/programming-is-how-we-talk-to-the-machines-that-are-increasingly/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [When you have to prove the value of your ideas by persuading other people to pay for them, it clears out an awful lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/when-you-have-to-prove-the-value-of-your-ideas-by-persuading-other/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Anyone who puts a small gloss on a fundamental technology, calls it proprietary, and then tries to keep others from building on it, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/anyone-who-puts-a-small-gloss-on-a-fundamental-technology-calls-it/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [We often get blinded by the forms in which content is produced, rather than the job that the content does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/we-often-get-blinded-by-the-forms-in-which-content-is-produced-rather/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [It's hard to make something as large as a government change. It's a little bit like building the transcontinental railroad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/it-s-hard-to-make-something-as-large-as-a-government-change-it-s-a/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [The problem for most artists isn't piracy, it's obscurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/the-problem-for-most-artists-isn-t-piracy-it-s-obscurity/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [We were the first people to do advertising on the Web. I actually saw in 1993 that the ad could be the content, the destination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/we-were-the-first-people-to-do-advertising-on-the-web-i-actually-saw/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [You have to pay attention to money, but it shouldn't be about the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/you-have-to-pay-attention-to-money-but-it-shouldn-t-be-about-the-money/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [The thing we should all be looking for are people who want to make a difference. I'm a big believer in the Silicon Valley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/the-thing-we-should-all-be-looking-for-are-people-who-want-to-make-a/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Amazon is now the definitive source for data about whole sets of products - fungible consumer products. EBay is the authoritative source for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/amazon-is-now-the-definitive-source-for-data-about-whole-sets-of/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Everybody's enamored of the iPhone, the Google phone. But the applications are going to change. You know, we're going to start using our phones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/everybody-s-enamored-of-the-iphone-the-google-phone-but-the/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Being too early is indistinguishable from being wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/being-too-early-is-indistinguishable-from-being-wrong/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Who was the first person to fly across the Atlantic? Lindbergh. Who was the second? No idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/who-was-the-first-person-to-fly-across-the-atlantic-lindbergh-who-was/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) [Explore all 94 Tim O'Reilly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tim O'Reilly" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-authors-and-creative-artists/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-authors-and-creative-artists/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f8/tim-o-reilly-7147_art_obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-aut_381671.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.” — Tim O'Reilly", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tim O'Reilly", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Obscurity is a far greater threat...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-authors-and-creative-artists/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-authors-and-creative-artists/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```