Does information freely shared lose value? Yes, in the sense that the mere act of sharing weakens organizational structures maintained by privileged access to secrets.
We quote from, Secrecy at Work,
The Hidden Architecture of Organizational Life. page 
Secrecy is endemic within work organizations. It is not an anomaly nor is it only found in unusual or specia organizations, but rather it is woven into the fabric of all organizations in a multitude of ways.
Secrecy creates a social order, for example, by establishing boundaries between insiders and outsiders.
Secrecy lurks in the margins of the organization studies literature, almost as if it were itself a secret.
First there are concepts such as privacy, silence, anonymity and taboo that overlap in some way with secrecy.
Second there are concepts such as knowledge, identity, power, control, trust, transparency and many others which come into play whenever secrecy is discussed ... highly relevant to understanding how it works.
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Laurie Taylor talks to Christopher Grey about his study into various secrecies. bbc
Formal secrecy, as we see in the case of trade and state secrets based on law and regulation.
Informal secrecy based on networks and trust.
Public or open secrecy, where what is known goes undiscussed.
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