25 years ago this month Paul Romer's paper, "Endogenous Technological Change" was published in the Journal of Political Economy. After over 20,000 citations, it is one of the most influential economics papers of that period. The short version of what that paper did was to provide a fully specified model whereby technological change (i.e., the …
Open Letter on the Digital Economy
We are in the early stages of an era of great technological change. Digital innovations are remaking our industries, economy, and society just as steam, electricity, and internal combustion did before them. Like their predecessors, computers and their kin are engines of great prosperity. Progress with hardware, software, and networks is improving our lives in …
A bit of myth-busting about the speed of diffusion.
Check out this WSJ article by Tim Aeppel, involving a few quotes from yours truly at the very end.... 50 Million Users: The Making of an "Angry Birds" Internet Meme.
My first post at Geek Dad
Geek Dad is a large parenting/geek blog. They recently opened up to a few more contributors. Given my interests, this seemed like a potentially good fit for me. My first post is on digital free-range parenting and may interest some readers.
Top Posts of 2014
As is traditional, here are Digitopoly's top posts of 2014: 10 Reasons to doubt Tim’s Vermeer The easy target that is the Theory of Disruptive Innovation Tirole and Pasteur The Giant’s Shoulders: Suzanne Scotchmer The ownership of the machines No business built on teenager demand is sustainable Amazon: it’s not the power, it’s the lost …
Co-Founder Equity Splits
Alex Blumberg, formerly of This American Life and Planet Money is starting a new business. The business has something to do with creating a great network of podcasts (actually, three episodes in I’m not entirely sure but that is a matter for a future discussion). Naturally he is podcasting his own experience in this and I’ve been …
Piracy Undermining Content Creation: Loch Ness Monster or Black Swan?
Theory and common sense dictate that piracy should threaten new product creation. If it costs money to bring new works to market, then a reduction in revenue – all else constant - should render some projects uneconomic. So compelling is this theory that the content industries share it with lawmakers at every opportunity. Robert Solow …
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Credit Where Credit’s Due
Most of the year I work on digital topics. But I spend some time each year around the holidays – including this post - thinking about the economics of gift giving. For folks who traffic in ideas, it’s good to be known for something. So I guess I shouldn’t complain about the attention I get …
William C. Lowe
All students of the computer industry have heard of Bill Lowe, the leader of an IBM Boca Raton facility that launched the IBM PC. That launch was a signal event in computing. It catalyzed growth in the small systems market. William C. LoweI had the great pleasure to interview Bill a few years ago for …
The State of Performance-driven Management in America
I teach at a School of Management so you won’t be surprised to learn that I think good management can make a huge difference in the performance of companies, and ultimately the economy. But you may be surprised that there is very little economic research on the effects of management. Sure, there’s lots of speculation and countless …
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