In our day and age, it's push-button simple to "hit record" and, without anyone else on the call being notified, and the video meetup gets saved to storage media.
I'm not necessarily talking about the host or moderator making a recording, in which case others might see a pulsing red dot or other signifier, reminding them a recording is happening. On the contrary, when any random person on the call hits record, that person gets a copy of the screen action, without raising any flags. What happens to the recording after that?
The Grateful Dead were well aware of this issue at their concerts. Anyone could tape the event, with the new devices. Their policy was "go ahead" rather than to try policing and even punishing those creating, and even selling, "bootleg" tapes.
We have the same situation with television. I have the ability to record whatever is coming over the "telly" (UK) or "TV" (USA). I still have older VHS equipment able to do this. Nowadays more people use DVR.
One motivation for recording TV shows is "time shifting" i.e. the programs get broadcast at time X, but you'd rather watch them at time Y. You may also wish to watch them more than once.
Another motivation is mashups. With raw material from several sources, an editor might cobble together overview reviews of specific online conferences, each with multiple venues (channels, tracks).
Perhaps the audio track is supplied by some narrator providing a personal view of the activities. Videos from Burning Man have this flavor. A chief attraction of Burning Man, a major spectacle, is the opportunity to take and make videos.
The awkward approach is to let these new technological superpowers go unacknowledged and then, after the fact, invent rules and policies designed to rein them in.
Do others on the call have to promise not to record unofficially? Must they sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement)?
Do we insist that only those with hosting privileges have the right to hit a record button?
When do we grapple with such questions?
The hosting body might reserve the right to produce the "official" version of the content, perhaps later edited, yet explain to participants, including invited guests, the possibility of "unofficial" taping by anyone on the call.
The same hosting body might decide to release no official recording whatsoever.
What if excerpts from unofficial recordings make it to public forums? Is this a travesty, a transgression? What were the rules ahead of time?
In this day and age of rapidly evolving technology, it's a mistake to assume we all share the same codes of conduct and that it's OK to take for granted specific practices, as if we're all on the same page by default.
The past is not a sufficient guide to create the future, which is why explicit discussion and hammering out of the rules ahead of time is essential for any organization planning to wade into this new set of realities I call Cyberia (cyberspace).
