The 1/9/90 Rule

Since writing a Forum on Book Marketing Network, I’ve noticed a change in the old 80/20 Rule (Pareto’s Law). Pareto’s Law, written by an Italian economist, states that 20% of a population generates 80% of (fill in the blank). For example, 20% of the US population pays 80% of the income taxes or 20% of the world population consumes 80% of the world’s resources.

It appears the new paradigm created by the rise of the Internet (and confirmed by my observations with my Forum) is 1/9/90. In the new paradigm, 1% of the population actively and regularly contributes to the group, 9% of the population occasionally contributes and 90% observe.

The implications of this new paradigm are explored in Chris Anderson’s new book, FREE. Those authors / publishers selling on the Internet would do well to read and understand this new book.