Joseph Beadle was an expert in content creation and social media marketing. While many of his friends preferred to work independently as self-employed contractors in what had become known as the "gig economy," Beadle preferred the safety and security associated with his position as a salaried employee with a large consumer packaged goods (CPG) organization. Recently, an article he had written for the organization had elicited significant interest throughout the industry. His managers had commended him for a job well done. However, some of his friends told him they thought he had missed an opportunity. If he had been working independently, they said he would have been able to retain the copyright on the popular article and use it for other purposes. He wondered whether they were right.

Did Beadle miss an opportunity?