Too Long; Didn't Read
In January 1996, Bill Gates published what would go on to become one of the classic essays of the early internet. In it, he describes the very characteristics of the internet that would lay the foundation for the Creator Economy.
“One of the exciting things about the internet is that anyone with a PC and a modem can publish whatever content they create,” he writes.
While Gates’s essay is remembered for its prescience about the direction the internet would take, what’s less well-remembered is that he also sounded a warning: “For the internet to thrive, content providers must be paid for their work,” he writes. “The long-term prospects are good, but I expect a lot of disappointment in the short-term.”
Gates’s analysis was ahead of its time. While it’s true that the internet has made it possible for virtually anyone to publish content online, it’s also true that, a quarter of century after “Content is King” was published, earning meaningful income as a content creator has proven elusive.