Jeremy sparked the conversation, then Dave did a post on Thought Leader : The Business of Free & I did a follow up on the “Freemium” model. We’re fascinated by free at the moment, because Huddlemind is defining its structure as we prepare for launch: how to share and create value into the community, but still making sure the business isn’t drained in the process.
I bumped into a brilliant take by insightful innovator Kevin Kelly - this is WELL WORTH reading - take a peek >>
Yet the previous round of wealth in this economy was built on selling precious copies, so the free flow of free copies tends to undermine the established order. If reproductions of our best efforts are free, how can we keep going? To put it simply, how does one make money selling free copies?
I have an answer. The simplest way I can put it is thus:
When copies are super abundant, they become worthless.
When copies are super abundant, stuff which can’t be copied becomes scarce and valuable.
When copies are free, you need to sell things which can not be copied.
Makes sense? go spark some fresh thoughts and clarify the value you produce. Particularly if you’re working online, or in a less.than traditional markets.
This is indeed a very interesting topic. The Long Tail listed a number of related links recently as well [including your ref to Mr Kelly], some of which are fascinating - http://www.longtail.com/the_long_tail/2008/02/latest-free-new.html
In a world where the biggest way to apply value to something has been in monetary terms, the free model will certainly make people think about what is really valuable and what isn’t. This could be quite entertaining…
Darren great resource - thanks for adding value to the conversation, we all seem to have fairly strong opinions around this issue. I think having worked in non.profit as well as commercial environments there’s such a sense of polarity between the two traditionally.
The concept of doing work that you love, that does good and pays well and allows you to contribute to society is at the heart of social entrepreneurship. Money & common good shouldn’t be mutually exclusive - there is a fascinating hybrid emerging.
Creative capitalism may be the path through >>
@Max: Thanks for the thought provoking post. I think I’m most inspired by the people I’ve met through iCommons who freely share their digital creation while becoming important nodes of a culture which requires products or services which they can endorse. These guys then attract attention, and monetize it, while providing nothing but great value to all involved.
I agree, and guys like Jamison Young jamyoung.net is proving that it can be done without having to “sell out” to the big labels to make money in the music industry. iCommons is a potent aggregator for those of us exploring the possibilities of making a healthy living from sharing freely. thanks DD