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Capitalism Without Capital

Written by: Jonathan Haskel, Stian Westlake
Narrated by: Derek Perkins
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Publisher's Summary

The first comprehensive account of the growing dominance of the intangible economy

Early in the 21st century, a quiet revolution occurred. For the first time, the major developed economies began to invest more in intangible assets, like design, branding, R&D, or software, than in tangible assets, like machinery, buildings, and computers. For all sorts of businesses, from tech firms and pharma companies to coffee shops and gyms, the ability to deploy assets that one can neither see nor touch is increasingly the main source of long-term success.

But this is not just a familiar story of the so-called new economy. Capitalism without Capital shows that the growing importance of intangible assets has also played a role in some of the big economic changes of the last decade. The rise of intangible investment is, Jonathan Haskel and Stian Westlake argue, an underappreciated cause of phenomena from economic inequality to stagnating productivity. Haskel and Westlake bring together a decade of research on how to measure intangible investment and its impact on national accounts, showing the amount different countries invest in intangibles, how this has changed over time, and the latest thinking on how to assess this. They explore the unusual economic characteristics of intangible investment and discuss how these features make an intangible-rich economy fundamentally different from one based on tangibles.

Capitalism without Capital concludes by presenting three possible scenarios for what the future of an intangible world might be like and by outlining how managers, investors, and policymakers can exploit the characteristics of an intangible age to grow their businesses, portfolios, and economies.

Author bio: Jonathan Haskel is professor of economics at Imperial College London. Stian Westlake is a senior fellow at Nesta, the UK's national foundation for innovation.

©2018 Princeton University Press (P)2018 Recorded Books

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A must for leaders of developing countries

I read (listened to) Capitalism Without Capital per recommendation by Bill Gates and I agree with the overall ratings I have seen for it. At first the book seemed slow and rather bricky, however as technical explanation passed and the author touched on the dynamics of economy in the age of intangibles, I really enjoyed. When discussing about infrastructure and legislation to facilitate growth, I kept thinking I wish the new president of my country read this book.

To the end the reading becomes dull again, but I must say that this is still, one of the best paced and entertaining books of economics that I have ever read. #Audible1 #IntangibleEconomics

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Pretty basic stuff

Three chapters in and pretty disappointed with this book.
If have never heard of intangible assets or IP or Goodwill or the knowledge economy in general, maybe this book is for you. Sorry.

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Challenging, but thought provoking and educational

Fairly challenging for someone not familiar or passionate about economics but still very relevant and rewarding for readers from any background.

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Amazing book!

Great book. Need to put close attention if you are a newbie in the category.

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sounds like a very repetitive thesis project

not very good at creating a relationship with the reader as the subject matter is very dry and not a lot of effort into putting real world examples that relate on a more human level.

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