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Sharing Economy Provides Extra Cash And Creative Expression - SXSW

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The sharing economy is known for providing extra cash for owners, but these services also provide a better experience for consumers, Nate Blecharczyk cofounder and CTO of Airbnb said in a panel at South By Southwest on Saturday.

"We provide a differentiated experience," he said. "We have a whole spectrum (of choices), which I think allows greater personalization. We're moving to an era of more personalization. We're moving past mass production where one size fits all. It leaves you with a feeling of experiencing something you can't find anywhere else."

That has given Airbnb good word of mouth growth, he added.

On regulation facing collaborative consumption companies, Shelby Clark, founder of RelayRides, said reputation systems in sharing economy can help with trust, verification of identities and other goals of regulation. "RelayRides hasn't had a lot to do with reputation... But reputation systems can accomplish same goals as regulation."

Nate Blecharczyk cofounder and CTO of Airbnb said that regulation should be different for collaborative consumption services because owners of homes or cars are usually the ones providing the service. Therefore the service provided is usually much better than at traditional retail hotels, taxis, and the like. "The service provider is the owner, whereas most owners is far removed in the (taxi, hotel, etc)," Blecharczyk says. "It's a different level of service and responsibility. That maybe calls for a different level of regulation."

Not all people in the share economy want to make a lot of money or run a massive business--some want a "micro-business," said Juliet Gorman of Etsy. "Our data shows it's not just a story of just wanting to get big,"  Gorman said. "There's a lot of solo operations. Most want more sales but few want to grow operations. Most are solo entrepreneurs working from home. They're interested in creative expression. It's supplemental (income) not just a growth engine."

Some sharing companies have had challenges. RelayRides had a fatal car accident in one of its cars in February of last year, said Clark. "It's extremely sad to think about. With people in cars, eventually fatalities will occur... I'm happy to report our insurance policy is acting exactly as it was supposed to," Clark said.