Innovation economics: general propositions

The author introduces a new way to systematize the types of innovations depending on how profound the changes they cause are: civilization, epoch-making, basic, improving, micro-, pseudo-, anti-innovations. Their role in social development (functional differentiation) is demonstrated. The article illustrates distinctive features of the modern stage as a period of epoch-making innovation that leads to the replacement of predominant technological mode. They are a leap in innovation intensity, emergence of «the industry» of innovation generalization and diffusion, transformation of scientific knowledge into the main source of innovations, inversion of course and effect chain form «science - practice» to «practice - science».