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  • April 2017
  • Case
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Planetary Resources Inc., Property Rights, and the Regulation of the Space Economy

By: Matthew Weinzierl and Angela Acocella
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:28
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Abstract

Planetary Resources, Inc. (PRI) had a bold, some said crazy, vision: to mine asteroids. One might have assumed that developing the right technology would be the greatest challenge facing PRI. But even if the fledgling company could develop and deploy the sophisticated imaging, prospecting, and communication capabilities required for mining asteroids, two additional obstacles meant success was not guaranteed. First, uncertainty remained over whether, and how, property rights to resources mined in space would be enforced. PRI’s leadership's challenge was to anticipate, and perhaps shape, how this uncertainty would be resolved. Making that balancing act more difficult was a second factor: a complex and underfunded U.S. regulatory infrastructure that threatened to slow PRI’s progress and escalate costs.

Keywords

Property; Rights; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Aerospace Industry; Mining Industry

Citation

Weinzierl, Matthew, and Angela Acocella. "Planetary Resources Inc., Property Rights, and the Regulation of the Space Economy." Harvard Business School Case 717-053, April 2017.
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About The Author

Matthew C. Weinzierl

Business, Government and the International Economy
→More Publications

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More from the Authors
  • Space to Grow: Unlocking the Final Economic Frontier By: Matthew Weinzierl and Brendan Rosseau
  • Real Growth in Space Manufacturing Output Substantially Exceeds Growth in the Overall Space Economy By: Tina Highfill and Matthew Weinzierl
  • Relativity Space, Vertical Integration, and Additive Manufacturing's Role in Space By: Matthew C. Weinzierl, Brendan L. Rosseau and Jack Goodwin
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