Platform Capitalism (Theory Redux)

their profitability appears to be generated solely by the removal of costs and the lowering of wages and not by anything substantial.

as the ground upon which their activities occur, which thus gives it privileged access to record them.

new class, which does not own the means of production but rather has ownership over information.

Collective bargaining ensured that wages grew at a healthy pace, and workers were increasingly bundled into manufacturing industries with relatively permanent jobs, high wages, and guaranteed pensions. Meanwhile the welfare state redistributed money to those left outside the labour market.

Tax evasion, austerity, and extraordinary monetary policies are all mutually reinforcing.

The 1970s therefore set the stage for the lengthy slump in manufacturing profitability that has since been the baseline of advanced economies.

The consequence was that global manufacturing reached a point of overcapacity and overproduction that put downward pressure on the prices of manufactured goods.

position themselves as intermediaries that bring together different users: customers, advertisers, service providers, producers, suppliers, and even physical objects.

shift into product platforms