When Is Private Provision Likely to Overcome the Free Rider Problem? While the free rider problem clearly exists, there are also examples where the private market is able to overcome this problem to some extent. Under what circumstances are private market forces likely to solve the free rider problem, and under what circumstances are they not? In this section, we review three factors that are likely to determine the success of private provision: differences among individuals in their demand for the public good, altruism among potential donors to the public good, and utility from one’s own contribution to the public good.