Additional Praise for The Zero Marginal Cost Society
“An amazing work. . . . This insightful, surprising, and practical book helps us understand how the emerging Internet of Things is driving extreme productivity, the rush to a near zero marginal cost society, and the rise of a new economic paradigm. Rifkin solves the puzzle of what companies, nonprofit organizations, and governments need to do to reposition themselves on the new Collaborative Commons. The book is a must read for every citizen and decision maker.”
—Jerry Wind, the Wharton School
“Free-market traditionalists have trouble recognizing that the future of governance and economics lies with the Commons—a world of collaboration, sharing, ecological concern and human connection. Jeremy Rifkin deftly describes the powerful forces that are driving this new paradigm and transforming our personal lives and the economy. A highly readable account of the next big turn of the wheel.”
—David Bollier, author of Think Like a Commoner:
A Short Introduction to the Life of the Commons
“Brilliantly tackled. . . . Rifkin describes how the dramatic lowering of transaction, communication, and coordination costs allow the global scaling of small group dynamics, fundamentally changing the choices that humanity can make for its social organization. Read it, rejoice, and take action to build the new world in which the market and the state are not destroying the Commons, but aligned with it.”
—Michel Bauwens, founder of P2P Foundation
“Jeremy Rifkin has always been ahead of the curve. In The Zero Marginal Cost Society, Rifkin takes us on a journey to the future, beyond consumerism to ‘prosumers’ who produce what they consume and share what they have on a Collaborative Commons, a contemporary expression of Gandhi’s ‘Swadeshi.’ His down to earth vision of democratizing innovation and creativity on a global scale, for the well-being of all, is inspiring and, equally important, doable.”
—Vandana Shiva, environmental activist and recipient of the Right Livelihood Award
“If you want to understand why we are in the midst of a massive paradigm shift from an age of top-down, centralized institutions to a world of distributed and collaborative power, I would highly recommend reading Jeremy Rifkin’s new book. He clearly joins the dots on how the likes of 3D printing, crowdfunding, and online education platforms are all connected and describes the disruptions that lie just around the corner for most sectors.”
—Rachel Botsman, author of What’s Mine is Yours:
How Collaborative Consumption Is Changing The Way We Live
“Jeremy Rifkin understands that it’s people and communities who are at the heart of the new economic paradigm. People all over the world are building the collaborative economy and Rifkin’s thoughtful analysis further illustrates that this is an idea whose time has come.”
—Natalie Foster, executive director of peers.org
The
Zero Marginal Cost Society
The
Zero Marginal Cost Society
The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism
Jeremy Rifkin
THE ZERO MARGINAL COST SOCIETY
Copyright © Jeremy Rifkin
All rights reserved.
First published in 2014 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN® in the U.S.—
a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world, this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN: 978-1-137-27846-3
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Rifkin, Jeremy.
The zero marginal cost society : the
Yenthu Wentz
Aneesa Price
Suzanne Weyn
Mary Marks
Craig Johnson
Patrice Michelle
Kate McMullan
Sherryl Woods
Steven Savile
Hallie Swanson