Are the goods that businesses offer for "free" to consumers also free to society?
A) Yes,because the individual consumer does not have to pay for them.
B) Yes,because the marginal benefit is greater than the marginal cost.
C) No,because scarce resources were used to produce the free goods.
D) No,because society does not assign a value to free goods.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Goods that businesses offer for "free" to consumers may not be free to society as scarce resources were used to produce them. The business may have to allocate resources such as labor, materials, and capital to produce these goods, which could have been used to produce other goods that society may value more. Therefore, even though the individual consumers are not paying for them, the opportunity cost incurred to produce these goods makes them not truly free to society.

Are the Goods That Businesses Offer for "Free" to Consumers