The Rules of the Game of Platform Cooperativism
Text originally published by Guido Smorto for CCCB Lab on 07/02/2017 “Platform cooperativism” has become the most successful term used in the ongoing debate on shared governance and shared ownership in the platform economy. It attempts to define the new organizational structures and entire ecosystem that can offer a true alternative to the large-scale, for-profit corporations that are exploiting online cooperation among “peers”. However, in this lively debate the issue of market regulation has so far received little attention, especially with regard to the context of the European Union. This short article aims to show that the many solutions to…
Field notes from a co-design workshop around DigitalDIY case studies
Text originally published by Enric Senabre for Backlogs.net on 10/12/2016 Last Friday I participated in a co-design workshop of the DigitalDIY European project, which was a one-day session organised and facilitated by IDEActivity Center from Politecnico de Milano. The workshop was part of a series of meetings to apply and test new materials and methods for co-reation around DigitalDIY case studies, in this occasion related to organisations and work issues. It represented not only an opportunity to know more about the topic of “do-it-yourself” around autonomous and civic technology-driven projects under the open source philosophy and peer production, but in…
The User Experience in Platform Cooperativism
Text originally published by Enric Senabre and Ricard Espelt for CCBLab on 06/11/2016 [versió català / versión castellano] “Platform Cooperativism” is a fairly recent concept coined by Trebor Scholz and Nathan Schneider to disrupt the collaborative economy scenario, which is currently dominated by a few “unicorn” corporations and by what many people consider a neo-capitalist perspective. The concept is particularly timely because it coincides with the emergence of new proposals linked to the Social and Solidarity Economy that review the links between the economy, society and democracy, both inside and outside organizations. The concept of platform cooperativism can connect the tradition of…
Foreword to a review of methodologies for the design & incubation of collaborative platforms
Text originally published by Enric Senabre and Mayo Fuster as foreword to A Review of Methodologies for the Design & Incubation of Collaborative Platforms on 06/11/2016 Collaboration, and collaboration supported by digital platforms, does not appear out of the blue. It’s the result of an optimal design, and of development and organizational strategies. In this regard, the question of how to design and support the development of collaborative platform is central for their development. However, the knowledge around such topic still remains largely dispersed and unsystematized. What characterises a positive platform? Which methodologies of its design are available? Which lab and incubating…
A New Economy: Social, Commons, Feminist, and Environmental
Text originally published by Mayo Fuster for CCBLab on 07/06/2016 [versió català / versión castellano] Cases such as Airbnb, Uber, and eBay have popularised the concept of the sharing economy. Digital platforms allow for the exchange of products and services, defying the business model of traditional companies. As it turns out, however, the expansion of these platforms often goes against the rights of their workforces. This is the dilemma that Trebor Scholz analyses in his book Platform Cooperativism. Challenging the Corporate Sharing Economy (Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, 2016). As an alternative, he proposes platform cooperativism that complements the technological foundations of digital platforms…