Commodity Collapse Threshold

The Commodity Collapse Threshold is the point where a client stops paying for text output and starts paying only for judgment. Any agency selling "we use AI to write your blog" hits that floor within one renewal cycle because the generator itself is a $20 to $50 monthly subscription the client can buy directly. The framework says margin lives above the threshold: style guides, claim verification, source attribution, and named editor accountability. ContentIQ illustrates the upper side by fact-checking claims against real sources and discarding unsupported ones before drafting, which is work a client cannot self-serve. WriteRush illustrates the lower side: a WordPress plugin that generates posts inside the dashboard compresses the typing step but leaves voice and claims unmanaged. Agencies should price the editorial layer as a separate line item and treat the generator as a cost of goods, not the deliverable.