Table 2.

Key differences between commodities and assets (Birch & Tyfield, 2013)

Commodity	Asset
An object (thing or service) produced for market exchange	A tangible or intangible resource that can be used to produce value and, at the same time, has value as property
One pays a price, which is a onetime payment for the exchange of ownership rights	One pays rent (such as a licence fee, a subscription fee, or a user fee), which is a continuous receipt of payments as a consequence of controlling access to an asset
Transfer of property rights with the exchange	Property and control rights stay with the asset owner
As value increases, demand decreases (as in classic supply–demand curves)	As value increases so does demand for it