Episode 16: Zero Sum Games

What does that mean? Think about any sports contest. Whether it is baseball, football, or any other competition, there is only one winner. Second place is only the first loser. But financial success is not like that. Think about Apple Computer, the most valuable company in the world as I am writing this. One of the reasons that Apple is so successful is that it has created platforms for apps on which independent developers can produce and distribute apps that can make their creators very wealthy very fast. But consider this: everytime one of those app developers creates a successful app, Apple computer gets richer. But this is the important distinction. Apple does not get rich by making the app producer poorer. It gets rich by making the app producer richer. This is the exact opposite of a zero sum game. It is a game in which success by one party increases the success and wealth of the other. That is how business in a free society works at its best.