Open collaborative design/Free riders

So what about free riders? What happens when there are people who only take and never give anything back?

Well, nothing really. Contributors are not expecting a specific quid pro quo arrangement - they get plenty in return from using other things in the universal commons. If it is trivial to duplicate the results of someone's efforts then the more people who are able to make use of it, the better. The situation is not zero-sum — people are not going without as a direct result of someone else having it.

Consider free and open-source software where, as an example, anyone with a computer and internet connection can download the Firefox web browser or OpenOffice office software for free. Most people will be consumers rather than contributors, but it is of no real consequence.