INFRASTRUCTURE RULES

These define how participation happens.

• Then: port access, shipping insurance requirements, standardized contracts, clearinghouses

• Now: app store policies, cloud access terms, platform APIs, ranking and recommendation systems

Once set, everyone else must comply.

MARKET-STRUCTURE RULES

These govern who can realistically compete.

• Then: capital requirements for ships, insurance thresholds, creditworthiness standards

• Now: compute minimums, data access thresholds, compliance costs, scale requirements

They don’t ban competitors. They make entry impractical.

FINANCIAL RULES

These shape how profits are recognized and protected.

• Then: limited liability, corporate forms, trust law, bankruptcy protections

• Now: intellectual property regimes, platform fee structures, revenue recognition norms, tax treatment

These rules survive even when individual firms don’t.

LABOR AND PARTICIPATION NORMS

These determine who bears the risk.

• Then: sailors paid per voyage, outsourced risk, debt peonage in colonial systems

• Now: contractors, gig labor, content creators, outsourced moderation

The form changes. The asymmetry remains.

STANDARDS AND DEFAULTS

These quietly lock in behavior.

• Then: maritime standards, insurance tables, trade weights and measures

• Now: technical standards, file formats, default settings, interoperability choices

Defaults outlast debates.

CULTURAL AND REPUTATIONAL RULES

These shape what feels normal and legitimate.

• Then: respectability attached to benefaction, civic leadership, institutional philanthropy

• Now: innovation narratives, founder mythology, “mission-driven” branding

Once accepted, these narratives become self-reinforcing.