Free

1. The economics of free: When marginal costs approach zero

As a result, the net annual deflation rate of the online world is nearly 50 percent, which is to say that whatever it costs YouTube to stream a video today will cost half as much in a year.

The digital revolution has dramatically reduced the marginal costs of producing and distributing information goods. This phenomenon is driven by three key technological trends:

• Moore's Law: Processing power doubles every 18 months
• Rapidly declining storage costs: Doubling capacity every year
• Increasing bandwidth: Speed doubles every 9 months

These trends combine to create a "triple play" of technological advancement, making digital goods increasingly cheap to produce and distribute. As a result, many digital products and services can be offered for free, with companies finding alternative ways to monetize their offerings.

Examples of free digital goods:

• Email services (Gmail, Outlook)
• Social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter)
• Video streaming (YouTube)
• Online encyclopedias (Wikipedia)

2. Free as a powerful marketing tool and business model

Remember Steve Jobs's assertion that you're not even paying yourself minimum wage if you choose to take the time to wade through all the messy metadata that comes with file trading?

Freemium model has emerged as a dominant strategy in the digital economy. This model offers a basic version of a product or service for free while charging for premium features or enhanced functionality.

Key aspects of the freemium model:

• Attracts a large user base with free offerings
• Converts a small percentage of users to paying customers
• Relies on low marginal costs to support free users

Examples of successful freemium businesses:

• Spotify (music streaming)
• Dropbox (cloud storage)
• LinkedIn (professional networking)

The freemium model allows companies to reach a massive audience and build brand awareness while still generating revenue from a subset of users who find additional value in premium features.

3. The psychology of free: Why it's irresistible to consumers

"Zero is not just another price, it turns out," he writes. "Zero is an emotional hot button—a source of irrational excitement."

The power of free lies in its ability to trigger powerful emotional and psychological responses in consumers. Research by behavioral economists like Dan Ariely has shown that people behave irrationally when faced with free offers.

Key psychological effects of free:

• Eliminates the need for cost-benefit analysis
• Reduces the fear of loss or regret
• Creates a sense of abundance and generosity

These psychological factors often lead consumers to choose free options even when paid alternatives might offer better value. Businesses can leverage this phenomenon by strategically using free offerings to attract customers and drive sales of related products or services.

4. Digital abundance and the new scarcities it creates

"In an information-rich world, the wealth of information means a dearth of something else: a scarcity of whatever it is that information consumes. What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients."

The paradox of abundance is that it creates new forms of scarcity. In the digital age, information and many digital goods have become abundant, but this has led to scarcities in other areas:

New scarcities in the digital age:

• Attention: With an overload of information, capturing and maintaining user attention becomes valuable
• Trust: As information becomes abundant, trusted sources and curators gain importance
• Time: The abundance of choices and information makes time a precious commodity
• Meaning: The ability to derive insights from vast amounts of data becomes crucial

Businesses can create value by addressing these new scarcities, such as:

• Developing tools for filtering and curating information
• Building trusted brands and communities
• Offering time-saving services and products
• Providing analysis and meaning from raw data

5. Competing with free: Strategies for businesses

The way to compete with free is to move past the abundance to find the adjacent scarcity.

Differentiation and value-added services are key strategies for competing in a world where free alternatives are readily available. Businesses must focus on offering something unique or superior to free options.

Strategies for competing with free:

1. Superior quality or user experience
2. Personalization and customization
3. Complementary products or services
4. Building strong brand loyalty
5. Offering convenience or time-saving features

Examples of successful competition with free:

• Bottled water competing with tap water
• Premium email services vs. free webmail
• Paid streaming services (Netflix, HBO) vs. free video platforms

By focusing on creating additional value beyond what free alternatives offer, businesses can justify charging for their products and services.

6. The gift economy and non-monetary markets

Nature wastes life in search of better life.

The digital gift economy has flourished alongside traditional markets, creating new forms of value exchange. This economy is driven by non-monetary motivations such as reputation, attention, and the desire to contribute to a community.

Key aspects of the digital gift economy:

• Open-source software development
• User-generated content (wikis, forums, reviews)
• Creative Commons licensing

These non-monetary markets often complement and enhance traditional economic activities by:

• Fostering innovation and collaboration
• Building communities and networks
• Creating valuable resources and knowledge bases

Businesses can leverage the gift economy by:

• Supporting open-source projects
• Encouraging user-generated content
• Building platforms for knowledge sharing and collaboration

7. Free's impact on innovation and intellectual property

There's already a place for free in patents—it kicks in after seventeen years.

The tension between free and IP is reshaping innovation and intellectual property rights. While some argue that free undermines innovation by reducing incentives, others contend that it can actually spur creativity and progress.

Arguments for free fostering innovation:

• Encourages rapid iteration and improvement
• Enables wider participation in innovation
• Facilitates the spread of knowledge and ideas

Arguments against free in innovation:

• Reduces financial incentives for creators
• May lead to underinvestment in R&D
• Can threaten traditional business models

The challenge lies in finding a balance that protects creators' rights while fostering an environment conducive to innovation and progress.

8. The environmental and societal costs of free

Not only are our pages expensive, they are also unchangeable. Once the presses run, our mistakes and errors of judgment are preserved for eternity (or at least until they're recycled).

Hidden costs of free can have significant environmental and societal impacts. While digital free often seems environmentally friendly due to its lack of physical production, it can still have negative externalities.

Potential negative impacts of free:

• Environmental costs of data centers and device production
• Social costs of attention economy (e.g., addiction to free social media)
• Economic disruption in traditional industries

Addressing these challenges requires:

• Incorporating true costs into pricing models
• Developing more sustainable technologies
• Balancing the benefits of free with its potential drawbacks

9. The future of free in a world of digital economics

Suddenly a theoretical economic model, invented more than a century ago as a joke to ridicule another economist, became the law of pricing online.

The evolution of free will continue to shape the digital economy. As technology advances and new business models emerge, the concept of free will likely become even more prevalent and complex.

Potential future developments in free:

• Increased use of data as currency
• Evolution of freemium models
• Integration of blockchain and cryptocurrency in free offerings
• New forms of value exchange in virtual and augmented reality

Businesses and consumers alike will need to adapt to these changes, finding new ways to create and capture value in an increasingly free digital landscape.

Last updated: January 22, 2025