Why has capitalism produced economic growth that so vastly dwarfs the growth record of other economic systems, past and present? Why have living standards in countries from America to Germany to Japan risen exponentially over the past century? William Baumol rejects the conventional view that capitalism benefits society through price competition - that is, products and services become less costly as firms vie for consumers. Where most others have seen this as the driving force behind growth, he sees something different - a compound of systematic innovation activity within the firm, an arms race in which no firm in an innovating industry dares to fall behind the others in new products and processes, and inter-firm collaboration in the creation and use of innovations. While giving price competition due credit, Baumol stresses that large firms use innovation as a prime competitive weapon. However, as he explains it, firms do not wish to risk too much innovation, because it is costly, and can be made obsolete by rival innovation. So firms have split the difference through the sale of technology licenses and participation in technology-sharing compacts that pay huge dividends to the economy as a whole - and thereby made innovation a routine feature of economic life. This process, in Baumol's view, accounts for the unparalleled growth of modern capitalist economies. Drawing on extensive research and years of consulting work for many large global firms, Baumol shows in this original work that the capitalist growth process, at least in societies where the rule of law prevails, comes far closer to the requirements of economic efficiency than is typically understood. Resounding with rare intellectual force, this book marks a milestone in the comprehension of the accomplishments of our free-market economic system - a new understanding that, suggests the author, promises to benefit many countries that lack the advantages of this immense innovation machine.

威廉•鲍莫尔（William J. Baumol）纽约大学斯特恩商学院伯克利企业研究中心主任，普林斯顿大学荣誉退休高级研究员和经济学教授，在劳动力市场和资本市场等微观经济学领域进行了大量研究，且对企业家精神和创新理论做出重大贡献。鲍莫尔是30多本书的作者、合著者和编辑，这些书被翻译成10多种文字。鲍莫尔还为美国一些最知名的企业做过咨询。他的个人著作包括《微观经济学》《超公平主义》《历史上的企业家精神》等。