The public domain is a very powerful resource. Since everyone can essentially use the same information, you can have a situation in which the same knowledge, packaged in more or less the same formats, is saturating the market.

It is possible that the public – the people buying your products -- now has 10, or even 20, similar products to choose from.

That's not an enviable position to be in. Heck, it's almost like you were a real-world business.

Think again. Is it that bad a deal, really?

It is the same situation many brick and mortar businesses (or, for that matter, many online businesses as well) are in right now, and while many are failing, many are also quite successful in what they do. Look at the Internet marketing niche for example. If that's not an over saturated niche, I don't know what is. Yet, many marketers are making hefty seven figure annual incomes selling info products to that target market.

So, what's going on? Isn't market saturation bad?

Yes. Economics tells us that if supply (you and your competition) is higher than the demand (the people's need to buy that particular information or product), then you're in for a disappointment. With more sellers and less buyers, prices will fall and profits will vanish.

So what's an honest guy going to do?

Follow solid business advice. Don't move into a market that's already too saturated unless:

• You have considerable experience in running a business
• You have a special advantage in that market AND
• You already have multiple streams of income to fall back on in case this deal goes bad.

Instead,

• Find a niche that has little competition, or still room for entry
• Select your business model
• Use public domain works as your product/content source, and
• Market your business like crazy.

Yes, that's right. Building a business from public domain works is not too different from building any other business, whether it's online or brick and mortar.