New technology brought down costs: hand-driven presses gave way to steam-driven ones, and then electric ones.

ECONOMIST: Millennium issue: COMMUNICATION

That is, the invisible hand is a metaphor for a suboptimal outcome driven by non-economic considerations.

FORBES: The Death of Macroeconomics: There is No Invisible Hand

On the other hand, several digital learning companies report to me that the budget crises seem to have driven an up-tick in their businesses.

FORBES: EdTech Market Is Growing--If You're Disruptive