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Reward-based crowdfunding has enabled an unprecedented number of consumers to provision capital for commercial and artistic ventures. Each year, consumers use digital platforms to transfer billions of dollars to entrepreneurs and artists to help them develop a wide range of market innovations. Notably, these consumers obtain no financial benefits, no formal guarantee that their money will be used aptly, and no reimbursement options. Under such materially unfavorable conditions, why do consumers transfer their money to these producers? The present research answers this question by introducing the concept of a "market-fostering gift system": a social contract that entices consumers to fund the creation and enhancement of market offerings by mobilizing the logic and practices of gift-giving. This conceptualization includes the core stakeholders, processes, outcomes, and shortcomings of reward-based crowdfunding, providing theoretical structure to this consequential articulation of platform capitalism. In addition, this conceptualization advances theory about how gift and market economies intersect. Whereas previous research emphasizes the tensions that characterize their interface, this article brings to the fore the complementary, scalable relationship between gift-giving and market exchange. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2021, the city of Barcelona made the controversial decision to prohibit short-term rentals of private rooms to tourists. The ban renewed the heated debate around the uses and functions of private property in the context of the contemporary tourist city, where the market of tourist accommodation has been significantly impacted by players such as Airbnb. This study aims to give an account of the controversy surrounding the ban on the short-term renting of private rooms in Barcelona by interpreting it as a reflection of the intrinsic conflicts of meanings operating in the tourist city. Accordingly, it maps and analyses the different positions voiced by the social actors involved in both the political urban arena and in the market. The main hypothesis of this work is that the controversy provoked by the decision to ban the shared homes listed by platforms such as Airbnb unmasks different ways to "make meaning of" structural issues such as urban life, housing and inequalities, tourism, digital labour and precariousness in the immediate post-pandemic scenario of the tourist city. From the epistemological point of view, the study relies on a semiotic perspective and critically analyses different textualities related to the debate around home sharing in Barcelona. These textualities articulate different themes and figures at a deeper axiological level where a clash of value systems takes place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The existing body of research on the platform economy provides a variety of interpretations of platform labor. Nevertheless, current studies have either placed exchange rather than production at the core of their interpretations or overlooked the historical continuity of the type of labor to which platform labor belongs. Employing a historical-comparative approach, this article introduces the concept of "cross-boundary subsumption" to illuminate the characteristics of platform labor. Drawing insights from investigations and interviews conducted on ride-hailing platforms in China from 2018 to 2020, this article delves into how cross-boundary subsumption works in reality. The goal is to improve the understanding of platform labor and uncover the limits of the current models of the platform economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The text discusses the emergence of responsible platforms in response to the negative impacts of dominant platforms like Amazon, Airbnb, and Uber. These responsible platforms, such as Fairbnb and The Drivers Cooperative, focus on social value, fair working conditions, and sustainable solutions. While they face challenges and operate on the margins of the sharing economy, they aim to disrupt the market by appealing to sustainability-oriented consumers and catering to niche needs. Despite their smaller market share, responsible platforms shape public discourse and influence marketplace dynamics, challenging hypercapitalist models and promoting more responsible consumption and distribution of wealth and power. [Extracted from the article]

In recent years, some e‐commerce platforms (e.g., JD.com), which allow firms to set up third‐party stores on them, have established their own blockchain technology and publicly provided blockchain technology to firms. Besides, source tracing of fresh agricultural products on blockchain is a concern for consumers. For firms selling fresh agricultural products, whether to join the platform blockchain technology to disclose product freshness and whether to set up third‐party stores on platforms are thorny problems. To research the interaction between joining the platform blockchain technology strategy and channel encroachment decision for fresh agricultural product firms, we consider four theoretical models. The main results demonstrate that whether firms set up third‐party stores on the platforms or not, their strategies of joining the platform blockchain technology are dependent on consumer's sensitivity to the freshness‐keeping effort level of fresh agricultural product, consumer's trust degree of freshness‐keeping effort level, and the unit blockchain operation cost. Besides, if firms set up third‐party stores, the willingness of joining the platform blockchain technology will increase. Firms' channel encroachment willingness will also be affected by their joining the platform blockchain technology strategy. Moreover, when considering the fresh agricultural product supply chain, these main conclusions are still held. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on voluntariness as a mode of restructuring work in 21st century digitalized capitalism. What can be observed is a blurring of the boundaries between work, reproduction, leisure and engagement. We pursue the thesis that this transformation in the ‘nature’ of work corresponds to a (newly emerging) ‘mixed-activity economy’ in which people, on the one hand, create economic value in the sphere of consumption or leisure. On the other hand, reproductive requirements and economic necessities in everyday work and life can be flexibly linked through time-flexible platform work. In any case, the forms of corporate value creation and access to human productivity are changing radically insofar as they are no longer limited to classic wage labor alone. The invocation of voluntarism plays a key legitimizing role in this transformation. Based on a theoretical reconstruction of the concept of voluntariness, we bring together new forms of value creation through appropriation of resources outside of wage labor and the systematic analysis of voluntariness as a currently significant mode of action and governance in the digital economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study investigates anxiety risk and work-related factors among platform workers. The recent growth in the platform industry is a worldwide trend, with delivery workers in Korea representing typical platform workers. Methods: This cross-sectional study used the 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey to assess anxiety risk among 532 delivery workers compared to general employees. It identified associations between work-related factors and anxiety, including job demands and autonomy, legal protection, and emotional labor. Results: Delivery workers exhibited significantly higher anxiety (odds ratio [OR] = 1.67 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.23–2.28) and work-related anxiety (OR = 2.17 95% CI = 1.48–3.18) risk than the general workforce, and a significantly higher risk of having unfavorable work environment factors. Their anxiety risk was significantly associated with work-related factors, such as long shifts, quick return, time pressure, job stress, absence of union, work-family conflict, and emotional labor. Conclusions: This study identified high levels of anxiety among Korean delivery workers and associated occupational factors. It highlights the importance for industry and government interventions to enhance mental health support, mitigate poor employment conditions, and ensure legal safeguards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'Work Style Reform' (WSR) initiative, spearheaded by the late former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, has advocated for the adoption of 'fukugyō' ('side jobs') as an additional source of income for workers. While this initiative is often uncritically viewed as a possible solution to insecure employment, especially for women employed in low-paying, temporary positions, this article argues that the WSR's promotion of fukugyō, reinforces patriarchal norms rather than challenging them. Furthermore, it critiques the neoliberal ideology that underpins the WSR initiative, which portrays underpriviledged groups of workers, such as working women in non-regular employment earning less than their male counterparts, as 'flexible', 'autonomous' and 'entrepreneurial', capable of juggling multiple jobs while fulfiling their domestic duties. The article claims that the WSR's promotion of fukugyō lacks sufficient legal safeguards and social welfare support for fukugyō workers, the majority of whom are not recognised as 'workers' under Japan's labour law. As a result, it could exacerbate the problems of employment insecurity and gender inequality in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Modern Economic Science is the property of Modern Economic Science Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Modern Economic Science is the property of Modern Economic Science Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The transition to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) poses significant challenges for automotive suppliers, particularly in the Northern Black Forest Region, Germany's largest industrial area. This study examines the risk of falling into the commodity trap and the impact of platform economics on these suppliers. A VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) analysis is used to assess the consequences of the open platform approach promoted by the Mobility in Harmony (MIH) Consortium. The methodology is based on a comprehensive literature review on commodity traps and platform economies, as well as an analysis of the MIH Consortium's strategies for standardizing BEV components. The results show that while the MIH Consortium's modularization and standardization efforts can reduce costs and facilitate mass production, they also intensify competition and limit differentiation, threatening the profit margins of smaller suppliers. The study highlights the importance of strategic positioning and innovation to counter these risks. It concludes with recommendations on how automotive suppliers can adapt to the evolving environment and be agile in responding to new technological standards and market dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital platforms, such as Google, Amazon, or Instagram, provide a promising spatial fix to urban-economic problems by leveraging technology and data while connecting stakeholders and overcoming spatial barriers to make urban life, consumption, sales, and production more efficient. This article contributes to the debate on digital platforms in economic geography by advancing the emerging lens of the platform fix, adopting a critical standpoint concerning the solutionist viewpoint that presents platforms as a fix for various challenges. The article develops its perspective against the background of 57 semi-structured interviews, 200 conducted standardized questionnaires, and long-term on/offline observations. We aim to provide a platform fix perspective revealing how digital platforms redefine spatial interactions, addressing economic challenges through spatial fixes while becoming established as indispensable infrastructures; however, platform fixes often fail to address underlying issues, leading to platform dependencies and the instrumentalization of actors. Therefore, we suggest a cautious application of urban platforms as solutions and critically evaluate the formation of public–private platform partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the managerial aspect of digital transformation - various programs and infrastructure that have recently received the general name “algorithmic management”. The boom in the use of such tools occurred during the covid-19 pandemic as a unique set of circumstances for the digitalization of human life. The authorities of several countries monitored their citizens’ behavior, including with the QR-code systems that limited their rights, in the fight against the spread of the covid-19, which has caused discussions and even protests. Businesses accelerated their digital transformation in HR management due to government restrictions and lockdown measures and to production needs in the new conditions. Quarantines are over, but the active development of algorithmic management continues; it extends beyond the platform economy and plays an integral role in Industry 4.0, which makes the study of algorithmic management relevant and timely. A significant contribution to understanding algorithmic management was made by the report of the experts from the European Commission and International Labor Organization. Based on the relevant publications up to 2022, they suggested giving up the narrow understanding of algorithmic management as a platform economy issue; however, most studies are still based on this interpretation. The article presents a broader definition to identify additional social contradictions and challenges of digital transformation. The author considers algorithmic management in the perspective of sociology of management and sociology of technology, in particular the works of A. Feenberg and P. Edwards. The approach of sociology of technologies studies (STS) allowed the author not only to analyze the events of the recent pandemic but also to consider the future of such technologies under the transition towards Industry 4.0. The article identifies three elements of algorithmic management together with hidden social-managerial biases and contradictions related to their implementation and shows how the new approach integrates direct and indirect control in management.

This study examines the impact of blockchain technology on platform supply chains from the perspectives of information transparency and transaction cost. We build a hybrid-format supply chain in which one supplier adopts an agency selling format and sells a product through the platform by paying a commission fee, while the other supplier adopts a reselling format. A game theory model is adopted to solve the key question: What is the best blockchain strategy for each supply chain member? Our research shows that blockchain technology can be a powerful weapon for platforms to adjust prices and control the market. As for the two suppliers in our supply chain, they will become better off with blockchain technology due to the elimination of information asymmetry and transaction costs. Moreover, the optimal strategies for platforms strongly depend on transaction cost, commission rate, and blockchain's operation cost. Furthermore, we also provide a side-payment contract to help different players achieve Pareto improvement, thus reaching a win-win-win outcome. Our findings not only provide guidance for the adoption of blockchains in the platform economy but also complement the gap in research on information sharing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) poses significant challenges for automotive suppliers, particularly in the Northern Black Forest Region, Germany’s largest industrial area. This study examines the risk of falling into the commodity trap and the impact of platform economics on these suppliers. A VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) analysis is used to assess the consequences of the open platform approach promoted by the Mobility in Harmony (MIH) Consortium. The methodology is based on a comprehensive literature review on commodity traps and platform economies, as well as an analysis of the MIH Consortium’s strategies for standardizing BEV components. The results show that while the MIH Consortium’s modularization and standardization efforts can reduce costs and facilitate mass production, they also intensify competition and limit differentiation, threatening the profit margins of smaller suppliers. The study highlights the importance of strategic positioning and innovation to counter these risks. It concludes with recommendations on how automotive suppliers can adapt to the evolving environment and be agile in responding to new technological standards and market dynamics.

Within the field of studies on digital intermediaries in the domestic and care work sector, some research suggests that these intermediaries exacerbate and perpetuate the inherent labor precariousness of the sector and the social inequalities that sustain it, while others highlight the ambivalence of their effects. Focusing on the organizational structures assumed by digital platforms, the purpose of this article is to shed lights on the differential effects of the various modes of intervention that develop in each context according to their specificity. Through the study of the digital platform Zolvers in Argentina, we analyze its adaptation to a sector characterized by two opposing trends: the formalization of labor relations and the increase in hourly work. This gives rise to three hiring modalities: regular hires managed by the digital platform, regular hires managed by household employers, and occasional hires. Although workers use these hiring modalities interchangeably and even accumulate jobs that correspond to all of them, the effects on working conditions vary significantly. In the first modality, the platform’s intervention automates certain rights; in the second, working conditions are more heterogeneous as the legal framework is challenged by employers; in the third, working conditions are extremely precarious due to the sporadic and short-term nature of the work. This study highlights that the effects of digital platforms on working conditions depend on the type of intermediation. The research used a quantitative-qualitative methodology, including a survey of 300 workers, 20 semi-structured interviews with workers, two focus groups with workers, and four with employers who use Zolvers

In this paper, a Quality Model for Collaborative Social Enterprises (SCC) proposed in the article "On the Convergence of Collaborative and Social Economy: A Quality Model for the Combined Effect" (2021) was validated through the Gioia methodology. Semi-structured interviews were carried out based on a questionnaire applied to an intentional sample. As a result, the Quality Model was improved, and new aspects were recognized such as: the importance of sustainability in SCC even if the companies are non-profit, the importance of the communication of social mission, an adequate definition of the decision-making process, the consideration of aspects related to ethics in data management, the definition of platform requirements and customer experience, and, finally, the need to have a social impact assessment as part of the main indicators. In addition to a general review in terms of drafting and organisation of the model, maintaining its dimensions and graphic representation remained unchanged.

AbstractThe significant increase in profits generated by platforms has sparked considerable debate regarding the nature of this income. These discussions center on two perspectives: the value-creating perspective suggests that their profits result from new forms of exploitation in the platform economy, while the rent perspective argues that the platforms extract and transfer value from other value-creating activities. While the latter perspective acknowledges that platforms do not directly engage in value creation, it fails to analyze their functions from the standpoint of Marxian circulation theory. Viewed from this standpoint, platforms represent a new form of commercial capital that propels circulation. Through their capacity to collect and process user behavior data, they attain a higher level of centralization than traditional commercial organizations, and extract value created by productive activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The platform or gig economy has had a profound impact on the tourism ecosystem. However, the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) warns that whilst platforms can contribute to more gender equality, they can also reinforce sexism and inequality. While platforms offer access to informal micro-entrepreneurship, they can also expose women to heightened vulnerability due to limited control over clients and lack of legal protection. Our research questions the link between gender roles, spatial fear, and platform workers' experiences. Our findings indicate that despite Istanbul's evolving urban tourism landscape, the prevailing gender politics in Turkey continues to uphold conservative gender norms that result in gendered labour divisions and gendered public space access. As female platform workers navigate safety concerns and feelings of fear in Istanbul, productivity becomes spatially constrained, despite their efforts to adapt using diverse innovative approaches. Interesting conclusions are drawn regarding the future of work via the finding that platforms create a hybrid employment model blurring host-guest lines, raising questions about the implications for platform workers' safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital platforms are becoming an important factor in the process of reconfiguration and commodification of social reproduction during the neoliberal phase of capitalism. Developing a theoretical framework merging social reproduction theory and migrant labour regimes, this article argues that the introduction of digital platforms in the care sector is facilitating the expansion of precarised commodification of reproductive activities in a context of social care crisis. Through a mixed-method analysis, combining desk-based research with in-depth interviews of digital care platform work in Spain, the study examines the migrant labour regime of digital care platforms and how they take advantage of the international division of labour and global care chains to further exploit a highly precarious, informalised, feminised and racialised workforce. Our findings reveal that platforms use technology to rapidly access a reserve labour army, thus extracting more surplus value by restricting access to information, controlling the intermediation process and further fragmenting the workforce in reproductive activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Platform companies use techniques of algorithmic management to control their users. Though digital marketplaces vary in their use of these techniques, few studies have asked why. This question is theoretically consequential. Economic sociology has traditionally focused on the embedded activities of market actors to explain competitive and valuation dynamics in markets. But restrictive platforms can leave little autonomy to market actors. Whether or not the analytical focus on their interactions makes sense thus depends on how restrictive the platform is, turning the question into a first order analytical concern. The paper argues that we can explain why platforms adopt more and less restrictive architectures by focusing on the design logic that informs their construction. Platforms treat markets as search algorithms that blend software computation with human interactions. If the algorithm requires actors to follow narrow scripts of behavior, the platform should become more restrictive. This depends on the need for centralized computation, the degree to which required inputs can be standardized, and the misalignment of interests between users. The paper discusses how these criteria can be mobilized to explain the architectures of four illustrative cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diversified innovative strategies adopted by the new retail format in urban spaces have significantly driven retail transformation and innovation. The combination of online platforms and physical stores provides a substantial advantage in market competition. This paper takes "Freshippo", a typical representative of China's new retail, as an example. Based on multi-source data and using tools such as GIS spatial analysis, statistical analysis, and geographical detectors, this study comprehensively examines the spatial clustering characteristics and influencing factors of Freshippo physical stores in Shanghai. The findings show that Freshippo has significantly expanded in the Shanghai fresh food market by innovatively opening various types of stores. However, there are substantial differences in the proportions of different types of stores, with 94% of the stores having online retail capabilities. Each offline store in the new retail format presents a multi-level "complementary" spatial distribution feature across the urban space, with distinctive clusters in the urban central districts, urban periphery areas, and outer suburban districts. The radiation range of logistics and distribution services exhibits characteristics of "central agglomeration and multi-point distribution", providing residents with diverse and accurate services. Additionally, the comparison of multiple model results shows that the location selection of various types of new retail stores is significantly influenced by multiple factors, especially the nonlinear amplification effect of factor interactions on store agglomeration. These findings provide an important scientific reference for understanding the development of new retail formats and offer new ideas that promote the transformation and innovation of the retail industry, thereby achieving sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractTo come to a closer understanding of platforms’ control and normative influences over the gig-economy, in this study I focus on gig-workers laboring under extreme societal, economic, and algorithmic marginalization in a multi-billion-dollar global media industry: adult entertainers working on direct-to-consumer content creation platforms. Digital sex work problematizes accepted definitions of gig-work, because adult entertainers’ professional identities are not limited to singular platforms, because building community is fundamental, and because all dispersed professional performances cumulatively constitute content creators’ personas. Laborers across creative industries would do well to take note of how adult entertainers survive, work, and thrive in such a hostile environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article takes into exam the current literature about Big Data and data capitalism, from the perspective of the critical Internet theory. Particular attention will be placed to the ideas of data exploitation and raw data, which will prove to betray a form of digital fetishism: in short, the focus on the final results of the production process, rather than on the social relations by which the very same process is fueled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This issue examines technology-driven economic developments during the global COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Specifically, the articles cover the ways that gig work, the platform economy, and remote work have evolved during the course of the pandemic. The issue leads with articles that chart the interplay of the platform economy with various facets of the pandemic from the inequalities and risks faced by gig workers to market forces shaping the commercialization of hosting platforms. The following articles concentrate on the ways in which specific structural conditions—digital infrastructure as well as the structure of the economy—influence the unequal distribution of telework in Uruguay and the relationship between informality and remote work opportunities across Latin America. The last two articles explore remote work in Asia and North America. In the first of these two articles remote work in Japan is examined in order to investigate the cultural sources of resistance to the adoption of remote work. In the concluding article, the remote work preferences of U.S. adults are analyzed as a function of technology usage (videoconferencing versus instant messaging) as well as sociodemographic and occupational attributes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An underdeveloped theme in scholars' understanding of the personal services sector of the platform economy—also known as the "sharing economy"—is change. Most research on ride-hail, food delivery, accommodations, and other personal services has offered largely essentialist accounts. In this paper, we focus on how platforms have become increasingly "commercialized." In labor-intensive services, commercialization occurs as a growing fraction of the work is done by a core of full-time, dedicated workers. However, platforms that rely primarily on capital may display similar dynamics, in which a small number of participants account for the majority of activity and capture the largest share of value. In this paper, we present the first comprehensive account of commercialization of a major platform. We analyze how Airbnb markets in the 10 largest short-term rental markets in the United States changed between 2015 and 2019. We find considerable evidence of commercialization, as a rising majority of properties are rented on a very frequent basis, and casual listings, while still present, are a small and falling percentage. Relying on an original database of regulations, we show that enactment of even the strictest regulations has not durably reduced the number of listings and has had limited success in altering the mix of commercialized and casual listings over this period. We also consider the impact of COVID-19 on this platform and the sharing sector. We conclude that the short-term rental market on Airbnb has become a fairly conventional one, with little of the peer-to-peer character of its earlier days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the field of studies on digital intermediaries in the domestic and care work sector, some research suggests that these intermediaries exacerbate and perpetuate the inherent labor precariousness of the sector and the social inequalities that sustain it, while others highlight the ambivalence of their effects. Focusing on the organizational structures assumed by digital platforms, the purpose of this article is to shed lights on the differential effects of the various modes of intervention that develop in each context according to their specificity. Through the study of the digital platform Zolvers in Argentina, we analyze its adaptation to a sector characterized by two opposing trends: the formalization of labor relations and the increase in hourly work. This gives rise to three hiring modalities: regular hires managed by the digital platform, regular hires managed by household employers, and occasional hires. Although workers use these hiring modalities interchangeably and even accumulate jobs that correspond to all of them, the effects on working conditions vary significantly. In the first modality, the platform's intervention automates certain rights; in the second, working conditions are more heterogeneous as the legal framework is challenged by employers; in the third, working conditions are extremely precarious due to the sporadic and short-term nature of the work. This study highlights that the effects of digital platforms on working conditions depend on the type of intermediation. The research used a quantitative-qualitative methodology, including a survey of 300 workers, 20 semi-structured interviews with workers, two focus groups with workers, and four with employers who use Zolvers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital labour platforms transform work and employment relations in many ways. Crucially, they renounce the role of the employer, leading to a redefinition of traditional categories of actors and their roles in social policy and dialogue. Using the example of the EU proposal for a directive on improving working conditions in platform work, this article examines how this redefinition is materialising in practice among social partners in order to understand its implications for the future of social dialogue and legislation. While previous research focused on the status of workers, this study takes a complementary view by considering the employer side as a key counterpart in a functioning employment relationship. The actor‐approach is used to analyse the views and positions of EU social partners and how their prerogatives are affected by the blurring of the role of the employer and the redefinition of traditional categories of actors in social policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Platform food delivery workers have been under much scrutiny over the last couple of years. Undocumented riders, and their recent strikes and protests in France, have not received as much attention as other issues regarding platform labour (contract work, algorithmic control, surveillance). This article follows fieldwork conducted in Paris and interviews with food couriers. Building on work by critical urban studies, migration studies and science and technology studies, this research puts forward citizen‐rentier‐ship, a tool to understand how multiple parties profit from aspects of precarious status. Interviews with undocumented couriers who worked in Paris highlight how the subletting of accounts, the complicit role of the state, the hypocrisy of employers and the interdependency with the "regularised" put undocumented couriers in hyper‐precarious situations. This article concludes that labour laws, misclassification and migration policies are at the centre of the struggles of Paris' delivery workers and that they need changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China currently has the largest Multi-Channel Networks (MCN) market in the world and developed a multi-layered ecosystem, which presents unique insights into our understanding of platforms as infrastructures. Through 18 semi-structured interviews and the walkthrough method, we found that Chinese MCNs can be divided into the following categories: (1) Live-streaming guilds, (2) E-commerce MCNs, (3) Agency MCNs, and (4) Old media MCNs. We also found that Chinese content platforms have not fully monopolized the intermediary power because they rely on Chinese MCNs to take on the risks of professional content production. In response, the intermediary risks of MCNs are also transferred to creators who work for MCNs. MCNs can help creators to game the algorithm and monetize their content, but can also exploit creators and leave them unprotected. The ambiguous roles played by Chinese MCNs point to an uncertain future for content platforms' infrastructuralization at large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Soochow University Philosophy & Social Sciences Edition is the property of Soochow University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Despite the surge of interest in platform cooperatives, we have a limited understanding of the dynamics of platform worker‐member participation in these cooperatives. Drawing on interviews with 21 senior leaders and founders of platform worker cooperatives, we investigate the dynamics of platform worker‐member participation, finding that these cooperatives experience some successes and many challenges. We then build theory about how four distinct features of platform worker cooperatives—the facilitation of multihoming, the physically untethered nature of work, the relatively high importance of scale as a strategic imperative, and the relatively low importance of initial platform worker‐member investment—influence these participation dynamics. We find that the platform and worker cooperative organisational models are in tension with one another when brought together within a platform worker cooperative, leading to positive and negative effects on participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last few years, the proliferation of digital labour platforms has led to the transformation of business models and labour relations in an increasing number of economic activities, including highly feminized and informal traditional sectors, such as care and domestic work. Drawing on an analysis of 37 digital care platforms in Spain, this research compares the distinctive features and structural power dynamics they engender, and it constructs a taxonomy of business models of these care platforms. By analysing the main features of their operational models, we are capable of distinguishing three main types of platforms: marketplace, on‐demand, and digital placement agencies. First, the paper argues that the distinctive features of each digital platform business model have differentiated impacts on working conditions in terms of access to tasks, remuneration, flexibility and means of control. This differentiation allows us to understand what is transformative and what is continuous in platforms' precarization or formalisation of care work and working conditions of carers, mainly women and migrants. Each business model has its differentiated outcomes in terms of labour control and reorganization of women's and migrants' reproductive work. Second, more broadly, while digital care platforms may have contributed to facilitating workers' access to jobs, reducing transaction costs and standardising processes, this has often been through the creation of more flexible and insecure forms of work and to increased market pressures. Therefore, this study contributes to existing research addressing the degree of formalization of labour relations in digital platform work through a nuanced analysis of their business models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a platform for the trading of bulk commodities, securities, and futures, exchanges, characterized by platform‐like attributes, provide inexhaustible power for the further development of commodity economy through horizontal integration. This paper examines the international integration landscape of the modern exchanges through the lens of platform economy theory, specifically examining the ramifications of their horizontal integration on market efficiency. Employing the net utility hypothesis within the Hotelling model, we construct a nuanced trader utility model. Through a comparative analysis of platform profit, trader utility, and social welfare, the research discerns the impact of exchanges' horizontal integration. We highlight the intrinsic incentives for such integration within exchanges and put forth pertinent policy recommendations, adding a dimension of practical relevance to the academic discourse. The paper concludes by highlighting the role of government in promoting the efficiency of platform enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relationship between migration and the gig economy, specifically focusing on the experiences of migrant workers in urban gig work. The authors argue that while gig economy platforms can offer opportunities for migrants to improve their livelihoods, they often lead to poor working conditions. The article emphasizes the complex factors that shape migrant gig work, including institutional barriers, personal and professional trajectories, and labor market governance. The authors call for a more comprehensive understanding of the role of migration in the gig economy in order to improve the conditions for this diverse workforce. The text also examines the role of platform companies in defining and prioritizing the work of migrant workers, as well as the behaviors and networks that migrant workers engage in to maintain their distinct status. It explores the experiences and agency of individual migrant workers in platform work, as well as the challenges they face in terms of career pathways and workplace identity. The article concludes by discussing the future of the gig economy and the need for regulatory interventions to enhance the working conditions of migrant gig workers. [Extracted from the article]

The paper deploys the disclosive computer ethics (DCE) approach to reconstruct the ethics and politics of one of the sharing economy’s flagships—Airbnb. I investigate Airbnb’s technical design to identify the moral and political values that are embedded in the platform’s technology. I then analyze the platform’s ethics and politics towards a generalization of relevant ethical and political aspects by reconnecting them to the mechanisms, operations, rationales, and ideologies of the sharing economy in general. The paper contributes to the existing literature by linking between the ethics and politics of digital platforms and their technical design, using the case study of Airbnb. Additionally, it explores Airbnb as a specific platform technology with unique ethical and political values. Thus, the paper refutes the neutrality thesis and similar claims made by sharing economy platforms. Finally, the paper makes a methodological contribution to the literature on the ethics and politics of technology. It develops a practical DCE research methodology for uncovering the values, ethics, and politics of digital technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of technology ecosystems in shaping national economies and their impact on economic growth rates. It defines ecosystems as companies organizing multilateral markets across industries and investigates their association with economic growth using econometric analysis. Drawing from literature on multilateral markets and platform economics, the study finds a positive correlation between ecosystem presence and economic growth rates, highlighting their role in fostering innovation and increasing labor efficiency. However, challenges remain in measuring the full extent of ecosystem exports' cross-national effects. The findings emphasize the importance of ecosystem regulation and its potential to drive economic growth and national welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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While there have been numerous – mostly qualitative – studies on the experience and the conditions of platform labour, the exploratory potential of biographical research has so far been overlooked. This article responds to this gap in research by presenting a case study of a French crowdworker, who was interviewed in the context of a larger European research project on precariousness and unpaid labour. On the basis of her autobiographical narrative, the authors reconstruct how her relationship with two online labour platforms evolved throughout the course of two years. The aim of this article is to illustrate the benefits of adopting a longitudinal, process-oriented perspective on the experience of online gig work in a biographical context. By giving informants the time and space to openly narrate and reflect about how their lives evolved, it also becomes possible for them to work through difficult past experiences and gain new perspectives. Furthermore, this research approach can be a tool to amplify 'voices from below' as a corrective against powerful corporate strategies. The authors aim to make the process of interpreting autobiographical narrative interviews transparent by highlighting the analytical relevance of selected formal textual features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More people are listening to more recorded music than any other time in history. While record labels have largely rebounded from the lean 'Napster years' of the early 2000s, remuneration for artists remain low. This article moves beyond an investigation of label-artist contracts – largely blamed for low recording royalties – and considers the broader array of consequences brought by the institutional structure of the streaming economy. Three factors explain dynamics within the music economy: music as a non-rival, non-excludable good; digital service providers (DSPs) as interchangeable market substitutes; and the concentration of Major Label market power due to their discretion to grant or withhold catalog access to DSPs. The ultimate consequence of this market structure is to depress prices in the music economy; value that can be captured largely rests with rights holders. With the DSPs as nearly perfect substitutes, the music industry is constrained in its ability to increase its revenues. Due to market power asymmetries, the burden of this contracted market size is borne by musicians, and to a lesser extent, by DSPs. To illustrate the problematic dynamics of the music streaming economy, music is compared to another non-rival, non-excludable good with a divergent market structure and outcomes: video streaming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]