Why the internet doesn’t make money

One really interesting internet phenomenon is that many sites are not money driven.  Take Craigslist for example.  It is a very well known site, and many many people use it.  But at the same time, its founder has not made any great effort to monetize it.  sure, he does has some revenue streams from the site, but mostly it is a free website with no ads.  Now contrast this with other large organizations.  Large companies are always profit driven, even to the point of committing fraud to make their financial statements look good.  Even governments are anxious to monetize themselves, seeking tax revenues any way they can get them.  I guess the internet offers something else to individuals besides money.  I think it’s the whole notion of being part of a community and being able to contribute to that community that is valuable in and of itself.  I believe this is why some very successful internet entrepreneurs, such as the founder of Craigslist, are more concerned with creating a useful website than generating revenue from it.

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