I am a big believer that history provides more clues than we give it credit for. And this is a good lesson to keep in mind as we wonder which business models will take hold in industries disrupted by technology.

In the news business, the patterns are strong. Today’s interest in premium newsletters and sponsored content, to take just two examples, have antecedents as far back as the printing press. (For more details, I strongly suggest reading “The Invention of News.”)