Maybe part of the problem is in the first paragraph. Founders/VC types seem to think that being able to make money off of people's usage of your product is the

Maybe part of the problem is in the first paragraph. Founders/VC types seem to think that being able to make money off of people's usage of your product is the same as "creating value" for those people. To take an extreme example, if someone says I'll burn down your house if you don't pay me, is value created? Ok and if an advertising based economy/culture creates a phony demand for something, and then people purchase that something, is value created?