Blog #11

Describe the difference between a sharing and a commercial economy. Why does this distinction matter to Lessig's main argument?


A commercial economy is where the exchange of money, or currency, for another good or service is the accepted and normal interaction. A sharing economy on the other hand, is a community based on exchange, where money does not transfer hands, and in Lessig's main argument, the exchange of money is "poisonous" to this type of economy. Instead of a monetary transaction, a sharing economy is based on the idea that participants of a community give freely to others because of a personal benefit or feeling of obligation that arrises when they contribute to this economy. Lessig talks about several examples, including Wikipedia, Linux, and Apache, where the users contribute because they feel the obligation to better the community, not because of a monetary compensation. Within sharing communities, Lessig explains that there are two subcategories; 'thin-sharing economies' and 'thick sharing economies'. The major difference between the two economies is based on the amount the contributor feels that the contribution is going to benefit themselves. Overall the importance of understanding both economies is that Lessig feels that in our increasingly technological world there is going to be a need to create a hybrid of the two.