Here's a question that's not getting asked about all the FED's QE programs: where are these funds going since they do not appear to be causing significantly large price inflation in the United States? This is not simply an issue of "follow the money."
The on-demand delivery of media via streaming downloads is the digital analogue to the shift from inventory to production as needed. This appeared first in publishing with the development of digital presses and the ability to economically produce just one copy of a publication, eliminating the need to actually stock books in physical form. As this model of production spreads, expect ever greater dislocations of traditional production, but also expect the loss of the store where one can actually browse and inspect manufactured products prior to purchase.
Here's a thought on why academics should be dreading the rise of the e-reader as textbook and reference work. It's really obvious, but I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere yet. Maybe academics just haven't tried using their readers for research yet....
