An economy of ideas.

Here's another group I've been following a lot. There's a lot of innovative stuff going on over there. Get this, they run a design firm in Chicago. You'd never know. Most design firms are paid for their work. There's a one-time payment, much like buying a CD or a business book (had to tie it back to our work here). This group is different. They've found a way to own their ideas and circumvent the one-time payment. And they're having a fine time doing it. Here's the explanation of how their model changed. It's from 2005 and is still relevant. They became their own client -- they build services they'd want, and content they like to read (and share a space with handy web designers). Turns out, a lot of regular people needed and enjoyed the same sorts of things. They're getting paid for their ideas. That may not seem extraordinary; it is. In a society where ideas can run wildly, the structure of our economy is lagging. It still pays for the product and not the idea. Here's another way of looking at it. At some point that's going to change. We just haven't quite figured how. I think Coudal may just be the starting point for this change. There's something here for authors, musicians, business folks, and anyone who's trying to earn a dime off their ideas.