In this article I consider the Free Rider Problem and how it applies to free software, with references to the “Tragedy of the Commons” and the “Maker-Taker” problem. We find that with a nominal production cost approaching zero for free software, the free rider problem is not economically applicable. Moreover, when examining the nature of free software as a commons, we find that not only is it non-rivalrous, it is an anti-rival good. Far from being a problem, so-called “free-riders” actually increase the network value of the software, with each additional user contributing more value…
Most of the economic theory we operate under today dates back to Adam Smith in 1776. Smith made a fundamental assumption about individuals being motivated by self-interest, and used this motivation as a predictor for free market economic theory. Much of what was later based on Smith’s work miscasts his views somewhat, but for the past 250 years, the core assumption about individual motivations predicting group behaviour have been left largely unchallenged within our common conception and practice of economics. The assumption has been challenged and largely displaced in the academic study of economics, as…