Collaborative Consumption Part 1
Collaborative Consumption Part 1
Collaborative Consumption Part 1
Collaborative consumption is a fresh concept going back on old traditions. In the news today, it is something we are hearing about more and more.
For people who are not familiar with the term, Collaborative consumption, according to Wikipedia is used to describe an economic model based on sharing, swapping, bartering, trading or renting access to products as opposed to ownership. Technology and peer communities are enabling these old market behaviors to be reinvented in ways, and on a scale never possible before. Collaborative Consumption is disrupting outdated models of business and reinventing not just what people consume but how they consume it. Collaborative consumption is based on the concept that some person will pay for the benefit of having access to product as opposed to paying more to own it outright.
Is this just a hippie fad that will come and go, or is it really something society will grab onto as a new mainstream way to operate?
Politics
Will Collaborative Consumption move into the political arena with certain groups supporting it, and others dismissing it?
Economy
In term of the economic affects, will collaborative consumption slow the buying process down for consumers and negatively affect our economy?
Or will it perhaps be one of the driving forces to help us to dig out of this economy, as we find news ways to distribute wealth, and put money back into the pockets of the people who really need it?
Legal
What are the legal ramifications around peer-to-peer lending?
Will we see lawsuits with these types of activities that will slow their progress?
Or will we be able to mitigate the risks and liability like with other industries, so that it can properly grow and prosper?
Big Business
If you are a hotel, motel, conventional rental car company, builder, lender, etc., Is collaborative consumption a threat to your business?
Will big business do what they can to prevent this market from growing?
Or will they get behind it, and finds ways to grow with the market?
Environment
What are the long-term Environmental affects of collaborative consumption?
Some Background
The concept of reusing or public sharing of products is hardly a new one. For decades, many public and private entities have utilized some variant of public product sharing.
The term ‘collaborative consumption’ was coined by Marcus Felson and Joe L. Spaeth, in a paper written for the American Behavioral Scientist in 1978 and published by Sage Publications. The paper dealt with car sharing. The concept has since been championed by Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers, co-authors of “What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption describing collaborative consumption as “a new socio-economic ‘big idea’ promising a revolution in the way we consume.
In 2010, collaborative consumption was named one of TIME Magazine’s 10 ideas that will change the world
Next
In the upcoming weeks, I will attempt to dig in and start answering questions about collaborative consumption, as it relates to our environment, economy, politics, big business, legal, and other related issues. I certainly do not have all of the answers, and frankly do not consider myself an expert on the topic, far from it. But I do see Collaborative Consumption as a potentially very powerful thing, and look to learn more about it, as a dig deeper into the topic.
My Collaborative Consumption Experience
I rent out my 116 SF tree house on my property using Airbnb. I have been truly affected by the impact a rental such as this can have on the human experience. Words can not describe the feeling of giving someone the chance to feel like a kid again. Getting paid is merely a bonus, but certainly not a requirement. Seeing people’s joy is payment enough.
Submitted by Kenny Bavoso of Coop.org
