I QUADERNI DI

INTO THE BLACK BOX

PLATFORMS HAVE THE

2022
VOLUME #4

POWER…
AND PEOPLE CAN TAKE IT

EDITED BY BENVEGNÙ, CUPPINI, FRAPPORTI, MILESI, PIRONE

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARTS | UNIVERSITY OF BOLOGNA

 I QUADERNI DI INTO THE BLACK BOX

PLATFORMS
HAVE THE
POWER… AND
PEOPLE CAN
TAKE IT

EDITED BY CARLOTTA BENVEGNÙ,

NICCOLÒ CUPPINI, MATTIA
FRAPPOTI, FLORIANO MILESI,
MAURILIO PIRONE

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARTS

UNIVERSITY OF BOLOGNA
 i quaderni di into the black box

SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR
Sandro Mezzadra (University of Bologna)

EDITORIAL COMMITEE
Niccolò Cuppini (University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern
Switzerland), Carlotta Benvegnù (Université Paris 13), Mattia Frapporti
(University of Bologna), Floriano Milesi (University of Padua),
Maurilio Pirone (University of Bologna)

SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
Martín Arboleda, Cinzia Arruzza, Manuela Bojadzijev, Vando Borghi,
Antonio Casilli, Federico Chicchi, Francesca Coin, Deborah Cowen,
Alessandro Delfanti, Keller Easterling, Verónica Gago, Giorgio Grappi,
Naomi C. Hanakata, Michael Hardt, Stefano Harney, Rolien Hoyng,
Ursula Huws, Brett Neilson, Ned Rossiter, Ranabir Samaddar, Tiziana
Terranova, Niels van Doorn, Jake Wilson, Jamie Woodcock

The contributions in this volume have undergone a peer-review process.

DEPARTMENT OF ARTS
Director Giacomo Manzoli
University of Bologna
Via Barberia 4
40123 Bologna

CC BY 4.0 International

ISBN 9788854970953
DOI 10.6092/unibo/amsacta/6966

Graphic layout: Maurilio Pirone

First Edition: July 2022

 Cover photo by Pexels from Pixabay

Photo pag. 5 by Gerd Altman from Pixabay
Photo pag. 12 from Pixabay
Photo pag. 26 by Yuan Yuan from Pixabay
Photo pag. 40 by Jarmoluk from Pixabay
Graphic pag. 54 by Hasan from Pixabay
Photo pag. 62 by wal_172619 from Pixabay
Photo pag. 73 by Altman from Pixabay
 INDEX

Platforms have the Power... And People can

take it, pag. 5
Into the Black Box

Airbnb: leveraging the crisis of care to

become essential urban infrastructure, pag.
12
Rabea Berfelde

New valorization logics in the figure of the

digital platform. The case of
MercadoLibre, pag. 26
Sonia Filipetto and Martin Harraca

A critical engagement with platforms

through patent analysis, pag. 40
Lungani Nelson Hlongwa

Predatory Pricing and Multiplication of

Exploitation in Amazon’s Business Strategy,
pag. 54
Tania Rispoli

Platforms as assets and as a battleground,

pag. 62
Andrea Fagioli

Platform communism.
A manifesto for struggling within and
against platform capitalism, pag. 73
Into the Black Box

Authors, pag. 82

 I N T R O D U C T I O N
Platform Capitalism is not a thing, but a
social relation
elaboration. Paraphrasing
definition of Capital by Karl Marx, we claim
that today's capitalism cannot be fully
understood if data are not considered in
their overbearing
extractive power of capitalism is today not
just conveyed
Extraction» of raw material, to recall an
important book published just in 2020 by
Martìn Arboleda titled Planetary Mine. As
Sandro Mezzadra
argued, «today we do not just mine coal,
nickel, and other raw materials; we also
mine data. Moreover, the forms of
I N T O R D U C T I O N
Platforms have the Power…
…and People can take it
Into the Black Box
extraction implicit in data mining and
mediated by data other extractive activities that prey on
the famous human sociality are ever more at the edge
of capital’s expanding frontiers» (2019).
Since capitalism has been “electrified”,
then “digitalized” and finally “platformized”,
role. Indeed, the data have become a source of economic
and political power: “the social relation
on the «Territories of mediated by data elaboration” is today led
by Big Tech such as Amazon that should
be conceived as an economic, social, and
political actor holding power with no
and Brett Neilson precedent in history of capitalism. Since
the 1990s, we have witnessed a process of
digitalization that after economic crisis of
2007/08 congealed into what Nick
pag. 5
Srnicek labelled as “Platform Capitalism”. Indeed, with this book we would like to
In the following pages, scholars further stress that we now effectively live in
approaching the topic from different parts the “platform society” (Van Dijk, Poell, De
of the World will contribute to inquiring Waal 2019) or in what we could define as a
this paradigm. Starting from «the promise “platform era” (see, Cuppini, Frapporti,
of simplicity» that on-demand economy Mezzadra, Pirone 2023), remarking the
offers (see Hlongwa), authors don’t miss to specific features of the contemporary age
focus «on the interconnections between e- without any nostalgia or absolutization of
commerce, financial, and logistics the past. As a matter of fact, it is difficult to
operations» (see Filippetto and Harracà) deny the pervasive dimension of the
behind the implementation of digital
“platformization” of society in multiple
technologies. This means to consider the
terms: first, in term of the hegemonic
infrastructural role of platforms (Berfelde)
business model; second, considering the
or the business model that lies behind
infrastructural role of platforms such the
firms such Amazon (Rispoli), as well as to
GAFAM (Google, Amazon, facebook, Apple
investigate platform labour since – as
and Microsoft); third, watching at the
Fagioli states – «work organisation is a
political role that nowadays platforms
central issue in reflections on platform
perform; fourth, inspecting the multiple
capitalism». Thus, in the conclusion of the
forms of struggles prompted by platform
book, we propose “a manifesto for
workers; fifth, studying platform’s tangible
struggling within and against platform
role in urban transformations. Even though
capitalism” where we try to sum up in
platform capitalism is not a label to
eleven theses not only the main features
describe contemporary capitalism as a
that characterize platform capitalism
today but also the traces for its whole since the literature started at least

overcoming. Somehow, then, this book twenty years ago to talk in terms of

contributes to the debate around platform “Varieties of Capitalism” (Hall and Soskice
capitalism and its great expansion in 2001, Peck and Theodore 2007), it seems
recent years which was further accelerated undeniable that platforms represent a
by the Covid-19 pandemic. Although frontier for Capital valorisation processes.
literature on digital economy and platform On the other hand, platform capitalism
capitalism expanded exponentially since contains a summary of the multiple
2007/08’s subprime economic crisis, less proveniences that characterized Capital’s
attention has been devoted to analysing its evolution in the last sixty years which are
origins. We think that properly particularly relevant to be investigated.
contextualizing the roots of platform We want to quickly report some of them
capitalism (or Capitalism 4.0 as we defined starting from the so-called Logistics
it[1]) offers the opportunity to overwhelm Revolution.
the era of “post” (“post-Modernity” or “post- According to a consolidated literature
Fordism” more specifically), finally defining (Allen 1997, Bonacich and Wilson 2008;
the era we are living. Cowen 2014) between the sixties and the
seventies there occurred a “revolution” in
[1] Cfr. Into the Black Box (eds.), Capitalismo 4.0.
the logistics sector that drastically
Genealogie della rivoluzione digitale. Roma, Meltemi.
changed how capitalism globally

pag. 6
performed. The Logistics Revolution purpose thanks to the intramodality it
concerns three big changes within or due allows. In other words, the idea behind the
to innovation in logistical practices. First, Logistic Revolution realized through
there were changes at the managerial containerization was that «the flow from
level. The very core of the logistics sale to ordering to production to shipping
revolution can be explained as Deborah and to the next sale should occur in one
Cowen does: «cost minimization had been smooth motion (ivi, p. 15).
replaced with a model that emphasized Third, the Logistics Revolution contributed
value added» (Cowen 2014, p. 34). The to the dismantling of Fordist factory
“circulatory time” of commodities was no hegemony affecting workers’ political
longer a burden to the process of plus- power. To sum up this perspective, we
value achievement by capitalist: could recall the sixth thesis of the
something that – recalling Marx again – “Manifesto of Critical Logistics” we
should be reduced «close to zero». Rather, published a few years ago: «Therefore the
from the sixties onwards, logistics was “logistics (counter)revolution” is not just a
drawn by a business logic and rationality, technical innovation but a political
thanks to a systemic approach. Until the reaction to class insubordination of Fordist
introduction of this new approach workers and to de-colonization processes,
«physical distribution was concerned forestalling and really building the
exclusively with the movement of finished neoliberal era. It is not a coincidence that
products» (ivi, p. 35). After the Logistics today’s logistics industry is a world where
Revolution, attention was focused upon countless class conflicts are arising inside
the total action «rather than upon its the more general growing paradigm of
individual components» (Ibid). Somehow, struggles in circulation»[1].
from the sixties onwards, distribution and Following the innovation in logistics,
circulation were understood as elements another “revolution” occurred in the 80s,
of production. The second perspective this time in the field of retail:: Wal-Mart
concerns technological transformation, became the new paradigmatic brand of
which can be emphatically summarized by economy roaring «out of an isolated corner
the development of “containerization”. The of the rural South to become the vanguard
shipping container is probably one of the of a retail revolution that has transformed
bigges innovations of the twentieth the nature of US employment, sent US
century. Despite its first appearance being manufacturing abroad, and redefined the
in the US in 1928 (see Levinson 2006), the very meaning of globalization»
first massive use of containers happened (Lichtenstein 2009, 4). Thanks to the
during the Vietnam War in the sixties. For Logistics Revolution, the power of retailers
commercial purposes «the first Atlantic increased drastically. According to
crossing by a container ship [was] in 1966» Bonacich and Wilson (2008), retailers
(Cowen 2014, p. 57). Basically, since the started informing manufacturers «what
advent of the “second phase of consumers were actually buying and
globalization”, «goods need to be moved
quickly and accurately, at low cost and [1]
http://www.intotheblackbox.com/manifesto/critical-
over great distance» (Bonacich and Wilson
logistics-a-manifesto/
2008, p. 14): The container answers to this

pag. 7
therefore what the manufactures should most advanced economy» (Benkler 2004)
produce, when they should produce it, even though it soon revealed its clear
and, sometimes at what price» (p. 6). capitalist nature.
In some measure, the Retail Revolution Thus, the Dot-com Revolution and Digital
represents the beginning of the the just-in- Capitalism jointly concurred to shape the
time era, which is a sort of mantra for new millennium economy that mixed up
contemporary capitalists. Before Amazon, analogical and digital world like never
Alibaba etc, a paradigmatic example was before. For the first time, the new frontiers
Wal-Mart, which partially gained of Capital valorisation were pushed
(economic) power mining data from their beyond the mere analogical sphere.
clients. As Bonacich and Wilson put it: «the Eventually, after the 2008 economic crisis,
collection of POS data put power into the Platform Capitalism (Srnicek 2016) burst
hands of the giant retailers. They knew onto the scene: a tremendous set of
consumers were buying, which prices were platforms «have penetrated the heart of
most effectively maximizing sales, which societies» (Van Dijk, Poell, De Waal 2019, p.
products were gaining and losing 2), quickly defining new ways of
popularity, and how buying patterns were consumption as well as new figures of
differing demographically and regionally» workers (Huws, 2014). Platforms like
(ivi, p. 7-8). Airbnb, Uber (and then) Deliveroo, Glovo,
After the neoliberal politics of Regan and Tencent, Rappi etc., came up beside other
Thatcher, the global network society of the platforms such as Amazon, Google and
90s (Castelles 2010) witnessed a deep Facebook. The Web was increasingly
change in the market with the advent of a infrastructurized and platforms gained
“Dot-com Revolution” (Becker 2006), political power (after the economical one)
bringing actors such as Amazon at the through web control. In the digital space
central stage. Furthermore, in 2000, the platforms are becoming hegemonic.
term "Digital Capitalism" first appeared in Furthermore, work “platformization” have
a book by Dan Schiller, a historian of reached another level. Platforms have
information and communications. In the brought us to a «Jurassic form of labour»
book, Schiller traverses the transformation (Scholz, 2016) in a new kind of economy
of the internet that from the military (the “sharing economy”) that emerged
realm, which brought a deep change in «almost out of nowhere» (Huws, 2017).
capitalism thanks to the new web spaces. Rather, all the features of Platform
In the same years and for the first times Capitalism (both in terms of business and
concepts like sharing economy appeared in terms of labour) appear a linear
too. Such labels are loosely derived from development of the “evolution” of
the so-called Californian Ideology, in which economic system out of the 20th century.
an optimistic, technology-driven future We guess, the Covid-19 pandemic sharply
was depicted as a combination between shows this.
«the free-wheeling spirit of the hippies and These four steps brought to the “Platform
the entrepreneurial zeal of the yuppies» Era”. We would like to recall at least few
(Barbrook and Cameron, 1995). The features that seems particularly intriguing
concept of "sharing economy" appeared in to properly grasps some of its operations.
the first 2000s as «the very core of the

pag. 8
The first one is the impact on labour. With prominence within the market, lowering
the spread of platforms, workplaces and the prices, not only favoured the network
work modalities are changing. Also, the effects, but also the enhancement of
distinction between working-time and exploitation of workers – at various stages
lifetime is blurring. Fagioli’ chapter of production, distribution, and
focusses exactly on some of these aspects. circulation» (see infra).
With platform businesses, labour does not Finally, we would like to stress how urban
disappear but, thanks to the extractive space has become a value-added space.
capacity of platforms, is extended and With the focus on MercadoLibre's (MeLi)
parcelled out. Urban areas as the “new operations, Filippetto and Harracà offer a
terrain” of labour process as well as forms plastic demonstration. Since cities are the
of self-entrepreneurialism like “playbour” or terrain of platform valorisation, platforms
ranking systems are crucial features to be themselves are keen to influence city
considered in order to understand government, doing so through their
platform labour dimensions. The rhetoric enormous access to data. With such
of a “gig work” fostered by platforms came platforms conditioning city policies,
precisely from the «promise of simplicity» scholars start to talk about «data driven
described by Hlongwa in his chapter. governmentality» referring to the ways in
The second point to highlight is the role of which smart city are governed (Vanolo
platforms as urban infrastructures. Rabea 2014). As an example, we could recall the
Berfelde in her chapter brilliantly shows Lisbon case, whose municipality adopted a
the urban infrastructural role played by series of protocols with micro-mobility
Airbnb. In most of the literature (such as service companies (such as Uber) to co-
Srnicek, Van Dijck et al. etc) platforms like create new urban planning. However,
Airbnb are considered “secondary (service) these agreements soon fell apart due to
platforms” and are thus different from the the scarcity of data shared by the
GAFAM. We wonder if all such platforms companies, which turned directly to the
can be interpreted in an infrastructural national government: it seems a further
sense too for at least two reasons: on one demonstration on the power of platform
hand, they infrastructurize “digital space” to choose even the most suitable level of
precisely as the GAFAM ones; on the other administration to deal with.
hand, they are embedded into The last chapter of this book is the
“contemporary governance” concurring to «Manifesto for struggling within and
frame the “Stack” that govern today's social against Platform Capitalism». As a proper
life (see Bratton 2015). In her chapter, Manifesto we try to undergo two different
Rispoli shows the advantages that layers: one descriptive and one
platforms like Amazon gain in being on an propositional. On one hand, we address
infrastructural position in multiple terms. eleven topics tangled by platforms that we
Quoting Rispoli: «building an «see as the characteristics – and
infrastructural core is the factor that contradictions – of the new era». Power,
allowed the Big Fives (Facebook, Amazon, Infrastructure, Finance, Metropolis 4.0,
Apple, Microsoft, and Google Alphabet) to Algorithmic subjectivities etc. are all
construct their ecosystems and to features that characterize contemporary
guarantee their “platformized society” and the

pag. 9
transformation brought by it. On the other References
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«what alternatives do the contradictions of work. New York: Springer.
these transformations give us?». The
peculiarities of “platform society” are Levinson, M. (2006), The Box: How the
tackled within the Manifesto with the Shipping Container Made the World
precise aim to glimpse the traces of a Smaller and the World Economy Bigger,
possible different future «towards a world Princeton UP.
of plenty for all!».

Lichtenstein, N. (2019) The Retail

Revolution. How Wal-Mart Allen, B. (1997),
“The Logistics Revolution and
Transportation”, Annals of the American
Academy of Political and Social Science,
553.

Arboleda, M. (2020), Planetary Mine.

Territories of Extraction under Late
Capitalism, London, Verso.

Barbrook, R., Cameron, A. (1995, September

1), “The Californian ideology”, Mute
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sharable goods and the emergence of
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273-358.

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Goods. Ports, labour and the logistics
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Bratton, B. (2015), The Stack. On Software

and Sovereignty, MIT Up.

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Cowen, D. (2014), The deadly life of Van Dijk, J., Poell, T., De Waal, M. (2019), The
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pag. 11
 1

C H A P T E R
C H A P T E R

1
Airbnb: leveraging the crisis of care to
become essential urban infrastructure
Rabea Berfelde
Goldsmiths, University of London

Platforms are now increasingly qualified as The first part of the article looks at the
infrastructural, i.e. understood as the socioeconomic transformations that form
ubiquitous background upon which the background of the emergence and
everyday life unfolds and as technological spread of the platform business model. It
and social forces governing public action. is argued that if we want to understand
This article starts to challenge the “platform urbanism” (Barns 2020) – i.e. how
dominant and ubiquitous character platforms reconfigure urban spatial
associated with platforms’ infrastructural relations – we need to analyse processes of
character by looking at Airbnb’s operations financialisation and how they shape a
in urban space. It asks in what ways the specific convergence between tech and
platform’s business model is becoming urban speculation into which platforms
infrastructural and what notion of intervene.
infrastructure we can derive from is The second part develops an
operations understanding of precarisation, the ‘crisis

pag. 12
of care’ and of social infrastructure to reproduction of life depends upon — it is
disentangle how platforms leverage the argued that Airbnb intervenes into this
contradictions resulting from the condition by positioning the platform as
contemporary neoliberal and financialised social infrastructure. This claim is further
restructuring of welfare. evidenced in the fourth section which
The third part builds upon field research looks at Airbnb’s response to the unfolding
conducted in Berlin where I interviewed Covid-19 crisis. By looking at its ‘Open
Airbnb-hosts that regularly share their Home’ initiative and its newly launched
private home with guests via the platform. ‘City Portal’, it is argued that the platform
It looks more closely at hosts’ motivation pursues public-private partnerships and
to offer their home as a service. By now it is presents itself as a viable partner for
well known that Airbnb and its catering to austerity-ridden urban governments.
touristic demand for short-term holiday This article seeks to disentangle the
rentals in residential neighbourhoods has mutually connected processes of platform
severe consequences for local housing urbanisation and platform
markets. infrastructuralisation by looking at how
Potential rentier income is higher if Airbnb leverages and shapes urban
landlords offer units permanently as short- conditions of austerity. Thereby it applies a
term rentals which leads to the reduction processual perspective of
of housing stock available for long-term “platformisation”— understood as «the
residents (Wachsmuth and Weisler 2018; penetration of the infrastructures,
Cocola-Gant and Gago 2019). This causes economic processes, and governmental
rising rents and gentrification processes as frameworks of platforms in different
a recently published study confirms for the economic sectors and spheres of life»
context of Berlin: residential units that are (Poell et al., 2019: 5–6)—to analyse the
permanently dedicated to short-term spread of the platform logic across society
letting cause an increase in rental prices in and to study its impact on labour and
the immediate vicinity (Duso et al. 2020). livelihood.
Critical research on Airbnb rarely
interrogates hosts’ motivation to offer their The convergence between tech and
private home via the platform. The findings urban speculation
from my field research presented in the This first part of the article interrogates the
third section reveal that hosts’ decision is socioeconomic background of the spread
linked to economic motives resulting and proliferation of the platform logic
among other things from insecure across urban spaces and argues that it is
employment relations and rising rents due closely linked to the shift towards a rent-
to Berlin’s housing crisis. The article argues based and financialised regime of
that Airbnb deliberately positions the accumulation.
platform as an individual solution to The platform as a business model, which
precarity. Drawing on an understanding of relies on venture capital investment,
infrastructure as found in Judith Butler’s emerged from the political-economic
work — understood complexly as the social responses to the financial crisis of 2008.
relations and support systems the An ultra-loose monetary policy and low

pag. 13
interest rates lead to the growth of global this rent-based logic also shapes the
money supply in combination with lower business model of platforms. For example,
returns on financial assets which made Jathan Sadowski qualifies «digital
riskier investment, such as venture capital platforms […] as ubiquitous rentiers that
strategies, more appealing. Crisis endeavor to insert themselves into spaces,
responses exacerbated trends of things, and interactions—especially ones
«financialisation» through which the logic that were not previously subject to rentier
of credit and capital markets spill over into relations—in order to control access and
the productive sector and capital capture value» (Sadowski, 2020: 564). Nick
accumulation in relation to industrial Srnicek argues that platforms are «digital
production experiences lower growth rates infrastructures that enable two or more
than finance. Finance and industry, groups to interact» and thereby «position
however, should historically be understood themselves as intermediaries that bring
as being closely related. For example, large together different users: customers,
companies relied on financial support advertises, service providers, producers,
from commercial banks for their suppliers, and even physical objects»
investments, especially in fixed capital. (Srnicek, 2017: 43).
What changes through financialisation, is Rental income is made possible by the
the specific relation between finance and infrastructure for whose use the platforms
industrial production with companies now collect commission. Sadowski argues to
acting more independently of commercial differentiate between “data rent” and
banks and often being involved in financial “money rent”. Platforms mine not only data
transactions themselves. Additionally, as raw material that eventually turns a
commercial banks increasingly operate profit, but also “turn social interactions and
like investment banks and shift their economic transactions into ‘services’” that
activitis to open financial markets allow for the extraction of ‘money rent’ in
(Lapavitsas, 2009). the form of a commission (Sadowski 2020,
Through ‘financialisation’ value 567). As has been argued, platforms are
appropriation in the form of rent is positioned as intermediaries between
becoming increasingly important for consumers and producers which enables
capital accumulation (Marazzi, 2011; them to appropriate rent resulting from
Vercellone, 2010). Rent is, for example, market transactions. However, the goods
appropriated in the form of interest on and services platforms provide on their
finance capital. Generally, rent is qualified marketplace are produced independently,
as ‘extractive’ and ‘appropriative’ as is it a which sheds light on the labour involved in
form of value distribution enabled by the these operations.
control and ownership over an asset. This Following this analysis, Airbnb can be
«supposes a certain exteriority of capital to understood as a technology that operates
living labor, to social cooperation» a as intermediary connecting the suppliers
situation where capitalist do not directly of housing to a demand for a convenient
organise the social cooperation they set of options for short-term stays in cities.
exploit (Gago and Mezzadra, 2017: 579). A By mediating the exchange between hosts
great deal of critical research argues that and guests, the platform is able to control

pag. 14
the access to the asset, i.e. the bedroom profit- and rent-seeking mix within their
used for a holiday stay, and to collect rent business model and ‘extractive operations’.
in the form of a commission. It is a «lean Analysing ‘platform urbanism’—platform’s
platform» that provides a service built on urban operations and their impact on
the users’ asset (Srnicek, 2017: 49–50). labour and livelihood—requires
However, understanding the guests’ understanding how low interest-rates and
holiday experience as a service commodity low returns on financial assets led to
offered through Airbnb, sheds light on the interest-bearing capital not only seeking
labour involved in the production of this new investment opportunities in the tech
commodity. sector, but also the built environment.
Labour that hosting guests requires The global economic crisis of 2008, as it
includes the cleaning and preparation of was triggered by the collapse of the
the apartment before the arrival of guests, subprime mortgage market, highlighted
curating the listing (keeping the photos up the urban dimension of ‘financialisation’.
to date, writing texts to advertise the Louis Moreno argues, with reference to
space), managing the booking and David Harvey’s work, that financialisation
communicating with guests before and and urbanisation are structurally
after their arrival. Airbnb meticulously interdependent processes (Moreno, 2014).
organises this labour process in the form of The «financialisation of rental housing», i.e.
«algorithmic management» (Cheng and the process whereby rental housing was
Foley, 2019) and the way the platform’s constituted as a global asset class (Fields
infrastructure operates (Bruni and and Uffer 2016), is one iteration of how
Esposito, 2019). ‘financialisation’ intensified speculation on
Through recommendations, incentives and the urban form.
sanctions—which show a degree of Rental payments, enabled by the
«algorithmic ambiguity» (Cheng and Foley, ownership of land and real estate, present
2019: 34)—as well as the infrastructure of a key avenue for the ‘secondary
peer-to-peer evaluation through which the exploitation’ of workers income through
labour process is subject to metrics and land rents and financial rents.
measurement, individuals are continuously The ‘financialisation of rental housing’
subjectified as hosts in the image of what shows how through the neoliberal
Airbnb understands to be good hospitality restructuring of the welfare state—for
practices. example the reduction of public subsidies
Thus, understanding Airbnb as a labour and protections for social and rental
platform, complicates the claim that its housing—infrastructures of social
business model is rent based and works reproduction, such as housing, are
through the ‘exteriority’ of capital to living increasingly integrated into the
labour. While platforms are certainly linked accumulation cycle of this financialised
to financialisation through venture capital regime. In Berlin, the financialised
investment, which enables their growth- speculation on rental housing, which is
before-profit-strategy, we should analyse primarily driven by large real estate
more cautiously how different modes of companies, led to the current

pag. 15
exacerbation of gentrification and the This section goes beyond this more
housing crisis.[1] traditional understanding of precarisation
in relation to insecure jobs and develops
Leveraging the crisis of care to become an understanding which takes the
infrastructural? contradictory relation between capital and
The last section argued that life into account.
financialisation forms the socioeconomic Social Reproduction Theory claims, with
background which enabled the platform reference to Marx’ argument about the
business model and led to the dialectical relationship between
contemporary convergence between tech production and reproduction, that
and urban speculation. This section takes a capitalism contains the irresolvable
closer look at how platforms’ operations contradiction to separate life-making
play out on the ground and shape
activities from capitalist accumulation. On
everyday life, labour and livelihood.
the one hand, capitalist production
Federico Chicchi argues that the growing
depends on the reproduction of labour—
importance of platform-mediated labour is
labour power being the fundamental
related to the contemporary «post-waged
commodity of the capitalist production
context» or «the crisis of wage labour (and
cycle—and on the other hand, life-making
the salary agreement as it was determined
activities and the satisfaction of basic
in industrial capitalism)» (Chicchi, 2020:
human needs are subordinate to capital
16). The “platformisation of the capital-
accumulation (Ferguson, 2020;
work relationship» (Chicchi, 2020: 17)—
Bhattacharya, 2017; 2019).
meaning that platforms classify their
Nancy Fraser calls this subordination of
workers as independent contractors to
support their self-proclaimed role as life-making activities under the logic of

technology companies mediating between capital’s valorisation process the «social

two parties which results in workers facing reproductive contradictions» inherent to

erratic work schedules, piece-rates and the capitalist system as such. Fraser argues
having to shoulder risks individually— that the particular form of these
represents an iteration of the contradictions is historically contingent
‘precarisation’ that comes which the upon distinct regimes of capitalist
flexibilisation of the labour market and the accumulation as they are negotiated and
neoliberal restructuring of welfare. regulated by the state. Under the
contemporary regime of ‘financialised
[1] In 2019, the rent index published by the Senate capitalism’ they take the form of ‘care
Department for Urban Development and Housing
deficits’ caused by the neoliberal
(Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung und
Wohnen, 2019), which records both existing rents and restructuring of the welfare state since the
the prices of new rentals, showed an average increase 1980s, cutbacks in public spending and
in net cold rent from €4.24 per square metre in 2000
the privatisation of infrastructures due to
to €6.72 per square metre in 2019. The price of new
rentals rose even more rapidly. In 2009, the average austerity politics.
rent was still €6.19 per square metre and rose to an Fraser argues that these contradictions led
average price of €11.55 in the first quarter of 2020
to a ‘crisis of care’, a crisis experienced by
(Berliner Morgenpost, 2016; Senatsverwaltung für
Stadtentwicklung und Wohnen, 2019; Guthmann
subjects to
Estate, 2020).

pag. 16
reproduce their lives (daily and coordination that can reterritorialize those
intergenerationally) under conditions already existing» (Richardson, 2020: 460).
which systematically undermine their Richardson develops an understanding of
abilities to do so (Fraser, 2016; 2017). The platforms as network or relation between
‘crisis of care’ forms the background of existing urban operations. Marco Marrone
instances of precarisation—insecure and Gianmarco Peterlongo express a
housing due to rising rents and insecure similar view when they argue that
work conditions—discussed in this article. platforms rearrange the tangible and
The neoliberal intensification of intangible infrastructure on which the
precarisation processes is accompanied by urban informal economy depends. By
a mode of government which cultivates a examining how Airbnb and delivery
form of subjectification whereby platforms intervene in a context of
individuals develop a self-responsible accelerated touristification in Bologna,
relationship to prevailing insecurity and they claim that these platforms dispossess
risk (Lorey, 2015). «what remains of local informal economies
Platforms are often qualified by their – which have often also served as a buffer
increasingly infrastructural character. for unemployed or other social vulnerable
Plantin et al. examine how Google and individuals» (Marrone and Peterlongo,
Facebook shaped the commercialisation 2020: 122).
of the web. They argue that these Richardson’s as well as Marrone and
platforms have become so ubiquitous that Peterlongo’s understanding of platforms as
they qualify as infrastructure, meaning as actors reconfiguring the relation between
gatekeepers mediating transactions within existent urban operations shows, that in
and beyond the boundaries of the web order to understand how platforms are
application (Plantin et al., 2018). As we positioned as infrastructural intermediaries
have seen above, Srnicek defines platforms in everyday life, we need to go beyond an
as ‘digital infrastructures’ matching the understanding of digital platforms as
supply and demand of producers and interface. To analyse how platforms are
customers. Lizzie Richardson also argues leveraging the crisis of care to promote
that platforms produce «a new form of their business model, I turn to an
collective or public infrastructure» understanding of social infrastructure that
(Richardson 2020, 460). Like Srnicek, can be found in Judith Butler’s work.
Richardson associates their infrastructural Butler argues that bodies due to their
character with the role platforms play in existential vulnerability are dependent on
functioning like marketplaces connecting infrastructures «understood complexly as
supply and demand. Richardson, however, environment, social relations, and
goes beyond an understanding of the networks of support and sustenance that
platform as cooperation and economic cross the human, animal, and technical
actor, by arguing that they primarily divides» (Butler, 2018: 133). The differential
function by reorganising urban operations access to infrastructures—the absence
«such as transport, housing, and so on» and/or provision, the preservation or
«not through new physical infrastructure, destruction—then, shows whose lives are
but instead through novel technologies of cared for and who’s not. From Butler’s

pag. 17
definition we can distill an understanding means to supplement otherwise
of social infrastructure that lives depend insufficient income.
on for their reproduction. All listings were located in the so-called
‘Wrangelkiez’, a neighbourhood in Berlin’s
Hosts’ motivation to offer their home as district Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. The
a service concept ‘Kiez’ refers to a dense
The last section developed an neighbourhood of tenement houses,
understanding of the ‘crisis of care’ which characterised by a mix of uses, social
takes the contradictory relation between groups and a strong cultural life.
the sphere of production and reproduction The ‘Wrangelkiez’ is known for being
into account. Whilst the massive expansion multicultural, close to many nightclubs
of low-wage, insecure jobs and rising rents which makes it a tourist hotspot. The
predates the advent of “platform neighbourhood has a particular high
capitalism” (Srnicek 2017) the two case number of Airbnb listings in comparison to
studies analysed here will show how otherer areas in Berlin. In December 2019
platforms, like Airbnb, leverage this crisis there were in total 160 listings in this
to promote their business model as social neighbourhood, of which about 54 were
infrastructure. In December 2019, I individual rooms in private flats. Berlin is a
conducted field research on Airbnb in city of renters where 85% of urban
Berlin trying to identify what role the crisis dwellers live in rented accommodation as
of care—insecure employment relations opposed to property they own
and rising rents due to the contemporary (Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung
housing crisis in Berlin—plays in hosts’ und Wohnen, 2019).
motivation to offer their home as a service This high percentage of renters is also
through the platform. Hosts were reflected in the sample of the interviewed
contacted through the platform’s hosts: only one person owned the flat she
messaging feature requesting interviews was ‘sharing’ via the platform and another
instead of lodging. I tried to identify interviewee was living and hosting in a flat
people that hosted on a very regular basis his partner owned. The other six hosts
and only rented out a single room, i.e. a ‘shared’ a room in their rented
part of the flat they were living in. There accommodation.
are different types of Airbnb-hosts ranging All hosts cited economic motives as the
from my interviewees who only rent out a main motivation for renting out a part of
single room in the apartment they are their home through the platform. The
normally living in, to institutional investors hosts’ motivations can be divided into
that own multiple premises that are three categories:
offered as short-term rentals on the (1) the income generated through Airbnb
platforms. I sought hosts that were is a permanent and necessary source of
personally involved in the management of income;
their space to talk to them about the work (2) renting out via Airbnb serves to bridge a
that hosting requires and to find out temporary financial hardship;
whether renting out a part of one’s home (3) renting out is a
as a short-term accommodation is a

pag. 18
sporadic source of additional income. Airbnb serves to bridge a temporary
Anna belongs to the first group of hosts financial hardship. She has been
and for her the rental serves as a regular sporadically renting her room in a shared
income. She has been renting out a room flat for about two or three years, mainly
in her flat for around five to six years. Anna when she was not in town and her room
bought the flat she lives in with her one- was therefore empty. During the interview
year-old daughter and a flatmate for a she told me that at the beginning of 2019,
comparatively low price in 2006, before when she was writing her undergraduate
the current rise in property prices. thesis and therefore had less time to work,
She works as a self-employed real estate she stayed at a friend’s place or her
agent, studies part time and told me that family’s flat on the weekend to be able to
during her pregnancy last year it was share her room via the platform. Johanna
difficult to work and earn good money. told me:
Currently, she mainly lives from parental
allowance and the Airbnb rental. She «I actually needed this [the income from
describes the Airbnb rental as a steady and the Airbnb rental] because otherwise I
good source of income: would have had to work, but actually I
relied on the fact that I have capital, that I
«So, thanks to the flat I can be self- have this room, which I can sublet
employed, because it's like a life incredibly easy, for little effort and for
insurance, otherwise it would probably quite a lot of money.»
have been far too insecure with these
fluctuating incomes. It's relatively regular
Johanna was using the platform
that I somehow earn something and
temporarily when was unable to earn
what I earn, but still there are fluctuations
enough money to make a living because
and it's somehow [...] good to know that
she had less time to work. During the
you have such a small insurance. »
interview she said that an alternative could
have been to apply for housing benefit, but
Renting out a single room in her flat
that renting out her room via Airbnb
normally functions as an additional source
seemed to be the easier solution. Using
of income for Anna. However, when she
Airbnb as a solution to temporary financial
was unable to work as usual in her self-
hardship instead of applying for housing
employed business during and after her
benefit is an individual solution that
pregnancy, ‘sharing’ her home via the
reveals a self-responsible relationship to
platform became her primary source of
structurally induced insecurity. This
income. Her flat, and the possibility of
phenomenon—which also shows the low
capitalising on it by renting it out through
barrier of using platforms like Airbnb in
Airbnb, gives her the necessary security to
times of financial hardship—has been
pursue her self-employment.
discussed in relation to Lorey’s
Johanna, a 24-year-old student, belongs to
understanding of neoliberal rationality.
the second group of hosts and for her
Anna and Johanna are amongst the hosts
generating an income through
that depend—either temporarily or
regularly—on the income generated

pag. 19
through the Airbnb rental to secure their processes and otherwise insecure income.
living. Airbnb positions the platform as an
Markus, 33, is the only interviewed host for individualised solution for precarisation
whom the Airbnb rental is a sporadically processes by inciting hosts to understand
used opportunity to earn some extra their unused bedroom as an asset that can
money. He rents out his entire one- function as an insurance in insecure times.
bedroom flat when he is away on This is further evidenced by the «Airbnb
weekends or on holiday. Thus, he is also Economic Empowerment Agenda»,
the only interviewed host who never announced in March 2017, which states
physically shares the space with his guests. that the platform is «democratising
Markus works independently in the event capitalism»:
industry. He described his work as secure,
because he is in a permanent contractual «At a time of growing economic inequality
relationship with two larger companies […] Our people-for-people platform allows
and told me that he could afford the flat ordinary people to use their house –
without the Airbnb rental. For him the typically their greatest expense – to
rental only serves as an opportunity to generate supplemental income to pay for
generate extra income and spend less of costs like food, rent, and education for
his monthly income on rent: their children. […] For some, home sharing
has helped them stay afloat during tough
«[...]because I'm on the road quite a lot
times.» (Airbnb Citizen, 2017)
and often I'm not here and I've set a limit
for myself what I want to spend in my life,
This suggests that the platform develops
[…], on rent per month. »
its products not only to respond to
changing touristic needs, but in response
Markus was the only interviewed hosts
to the ‘crisis of care’ and leverages the
who belongs to the third group and he
condition in a bid to become social
uses the platform only sporadically to
infrastructure. To not reproduce the
generate an additional income which
corporate narrative, we need to analyse
enables a certain lifestyle.
more closely who is included into and who
In general hosts’ stories revealed that the
is excluded from Airbnb’s reproductive
economic motivation to share your home
model. Prior 1989 the Wrangelkiez was
results, amongst other things, from
located at the margins of West Berlin. It
transitional financial hardships, precarious
was a cheap residential area and therefore
self-employment and difficulties in
home to migrant communities, in
generating income during and after a
particular so-called ‘Gastarbeiter’.
pregnancy. Hosts’ motivation to offer their
Although the demography in this
home as a service via Airbnb can be
neighbourhoods is changing, it is still
understand as linked to the ‘crisis of care’
those communities that shape everyday
as it became evident, that for most of the
life in the area (Amt für Statistik Berlin-
interviewed hosts their regular income is
Brandenburg, 2019). Looking at the overall
not sufficient to ensure their own
Airbnb-listings in this neighbourhood,
reproduction in the context gentrification
which shows mainly white middle class

pag. 20
hosts, paints a different picture of the new search filter to show which listing
neighbourhood. For all those excluded have flexible cancellation policies. The two
from this reproductive model, the examples underline that platforms, like
platform exacerbates gentrification Airbnb, are more indebted to consumers,
processes and thus precarity and socio- in this case tourists, which results in
spatial inequality. It was argued that precarious labour conditions and hosts
precarisation under neoliberal conditions shouldering the risks of low touristic
is in a process of normalisation. However, demand.
as bodies are gendered and racialised, After an outcry by the host community on
they are affected differently by these social media, the platform had to rethink
processes. Risks and opportunities are the role of hosts in its crisis response. On
unequally distributed along lines of class, 30 March, Airbnb announced a relief fund
gender, race and nationality. People who for hosts affected by Covid-19 related
are most affected by precarisation cancellations. Airbnb opened up the
processes are excluded from Airbnb's possibility to pay 25% of the amount that
reproductive model. would normally be earned through the
bookings from the fund. This, however,
Airbnb’s covid-19 response only applied to bookings made between 14
When we look at "urban processes in covid March and 31 May. In a video message
capitalism" (Madden, 2020), it becomes Airbnb’s CEO Brian Chesky also announced
clear that the unfolding Covid-19 a relief fund for so-called ‘superhosts’ with
pandemic has momentarily halted the the amount of 10 million US dollars. The
circulation of value exploited by platforms company claimed «We are partners»
like Airbnb. With a dramatic global decline (Airbnb, 2020a) with our host community.
in tourism and an urban crisis of social The platform needs to portray itself as
distancing, the platform had to re-invent responsible actor towards their hosts and
itself once again to survive 2020. Airbnb needs to continuously renew the
raised a two billion dollar loan (Scigliuzzo ‘partnership’ with its host community, not
and Tan, 2020) and laid off 1900 only because their business model
employees of its 7500 people workforce depends on hosts’ assets—apartments and
during the unfolding pandemic (Airbnb, unused bedrooms — but also because their
2020b) to stay afloat after its revenues model of «regulatory entrepreneurship»
decreased rapidly earlier in 2020. However, (van Doorn, 2019) requires an organised
it needs to be remarked that the company user base that identifies their own goals
does not bear the main costs of guest with the company’s. Airbnb incites its host
apartments and rooms staying empty as it community to proactively lobby
does not own the accommodation offered governments against stricter regulations
on the platform. It is mainly hosts suffering that would affect their future market
financial losses from low touristic demand. opportunities (van Doorn, 2019; Ferreri and
In early March Airbnb loosened its booking Sanyal, 2018). Airbnb’s crisis response also
cancellation policy without informing advertised the provision of housing to
hosts. Additionally, the platform front-line workers and medical staff in the
introduced a vicinity of their workplace.

pag. 21
Under its ‘Open Homes initiative’ Airbnb capitalism discussed in the first and
regularly promotes the provision of second part of this article. What Airbnb’s
'emergency housing’. During the unfolding crisis response shows is that platforms are
pandemic, hosts could voluntarily sign up designed to fill in the gaps which emerge
to offer their places for free or at a reduced when economies tend to collapse and
price and the platform would not charge respond to gaps in infrastructural and
any fees for stays arranged under this service provision resulting from fiscal
scheme. The company’s statement restructuring and austerity politics.
claimed that in this initiative they were In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, in
partnering up with NGOs, amongst others September 2020, the platform also
the International Federation of the Red announced its «City Portal» initiative.
Cross and the International Rescue According to Airbnb the product
Committee (Airbnb, 2020e). On 7 addresses governments and tourism
December 2020, ahead of its planned IPO, organisations to help them «deal with the
the platform launched the NGO economic fallout and lost tourism tax
Airbnb.org. On 9 December 2020 Airbnb revenues from the current COVID-19
went public on Wallstreet which its share pandemic» by providing data on short-
price doubling on the first day. The success term rentals and tax revenues (Airbnb,
of this operation was certainly ensured by 2020c). It needs to be questioned why the
Airbnb's crisis response and its ability to platform has long been criticised for not
demonstrate that it is a crisis-proof and providing the data necessary for local
flexible business model that can be governments to enforce regulation and yet
continuously reinvented to address again offers their «partnership» in
systemic disruptions. With the Open developing regulations for short-term
Homes initiative and the frontline stay rentals. By this form of partnership-
initiative merging into this non-profit building—although it remains to be seen
organisation, the platform claims that it its how urban governments react to this offer
aiming to formalise its dedication «to —Airbnb seeks the institutional legitimacy
facilitating temporary stays for people in trying to prevent stricter regulations that
times of crisis» (Airbnb, 2020f). With would undermine its business model.
Airbnb.org we again see an attempt to Furthermore, with these partnerships they
partner up with NGOs and hosts being recognise cities as sites of austerity politics
incentivised to offer their homes for free, at that depend on the influx of tourist money.
a reduced price or to donate. These Airbnb leverages this condition aiming to
initiatives are an example of how the take on governmental responsibilities (i.e.
platform pursues public-private the regulation) at the urban level. This
partnerships aiming to position itself as a initiative is another instance of its pursued
self-evident partner for the provision of infrastructuralisation.
welfare. Covid-19 is distinct because it
unfolds simultaneously as an economic Conclusion: Airbnb as essential urban
and a public health crisis and as such infrastructure?
intervenes into broader patterns of the Ranging from the individual facing
crisis of care caused by financialised precarious labour and livelihood, to cities

pag. 22
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 2

C H A P T E R
C H A P T E R

2
New valorization logics in the figure of the digital
platform. The case of MercadoLibre
Sonia Filipetto and Martin Harraca
Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento (Argentina); University of Surrey (UK)

In contemporary capitalism's consequence of the global COVID-19

transformation, the platform economy pandemic. This chapter describes and
seems to be emerging as a leading actor in analyzes MercadoLibre's (MeLi) operations,
applying digital technologies, new Latin America's leading e-commerce
business models, and renewing capital- platform that has expanded its businesses
labor relationship forms. Big digital into the financial and logistics sphere. In
platforms have expanded worldwide at particular, we focus on the
extraordinary rates, are making enormous interconnections between its e-commerce,

efforts in research and development, and financial, and logistics operations[1]. We

have reached record levels of market follow Mezzadra and Neilson (2017, 2019)
approach by using the categories of
valuation. The top five companies in the
extraction, logistics, and finance to
S&P 500 are all technology giants,
representing today over 20% of that index,
[1] The authors are very grateful for Pablo Miguez’ s
an unprecedented level of concentration. detailed reading of this work and comments. We also
This was further exacerbated by these want to specially thank the IBB team for encouraging
us to write this chapter.
companies' accelerated growth as a

pag. 26
analyze capitalist operations and their as a coordination mechanism, it would be
interactions. This perspective considers optimal for all users to converge on the
extractive operations in an expanded same platform, enabling interconnection
sense, particularly with regard to finance between all of them. But the importance
but also in the logistics of supply chains and scope of network effects can be
and production networks. According to nuanced: Not all users (or nodes) are
the authors, «In the present conjuncture, equivalent, nor is the interconnection
extractive operations such as those we between all users relevant in all the
analyze in the cases of logistics and services provided by the various platforms
finance dominate the composition of (Parker et al., 2016).
aggregate capital and tend to command Further, platform companies build control
and submit other operations of capital to mechanisms in their ecosystems by
their logics» (Mezzadra and Neilson. 2019: developing closed applications and
6). privatized Internet infrastructure to
Generally speaking, these three areas have maintain a competitive advantage over
provided conceptual orientations and their rivals (Srnicek, 2018). Thus, the
empirical grids for the analysis of technical-founded logic that supports the
contemporary capitalism and a framework need for convergence can be reversed: As
to show its distinctive rationality and logic. proposed by certain anti-monopoly
We propose to connect this development approaches, if interoperability between
with broader social issues and its platforms were forced, it could
consequences. At a global level, MeLi has substantially modify the existence of
been compared to Amazon and Alibaba barriers to entry in the markets in which
for running similar businesses in different they operate (Zingales et al., 2019). In this
markets. With Alibaba it share similarities sense, it can be argued that these
in the development of its payment companies have developed their
systems, and with Amazon it shares a expansion and dominance with an
similar trajectory of rapid growth (in terms enormous regulatory and tax “free space”,
of revenues and workforce) and the facilitating their constitution as dominant
development of its own logistics network. actors.
A remarkable aspect of digital platforms is This power concentration also expresses
that they facilitate the building of global the platform’s novelty as a space for
monopolistic or oligopolistic markets in economic organization (Srnicek, 2018).
very short periods of time (Casilli, 2018; Here, productive activity occurs not only
Vercellone et al., 2018). The earliest within the framework of the company, but
research on platforms already showed that in broader ecosystems in which formal
network effects are an element that favors organizations interact with other
the spontaneous constitution of highly companies, independent contractors,
concentrated markets. distribution networks, and user and
This led some researchers to argue that consumer communities. Based on the
the existence of monopolies in this type of control of the technological infrastructure,
market structure is efficient (Evans, 2003; it is possible to supervise all these actors'
Rochet and Tirole, 2003): interactions through the use of algorithms.

pag. 27
This positions the platforms in a privileged shareholder, and they signed an exclusive
place to capture the value produced 5-year alliance for all of Latin America. In
(Harracá, 2017). By addressing the case of addition, they added a new investment of
MercadoLibre, this chapter will explore US $ 46.7 million by large funds such as
how the transformations of the platform Goldman Sachs Entities. In 2002 they
model act and are expressed. acquired Lokau, a Brazilian online business
platform that allowed them to incorporate
A brief history of the company: key all their respective registered users. In
milestones 2003, it launched its Mercado Pago
MercadoLibre was founded in 1999 by two payment platform, which, as we will see
Argentines, Marcos Galperín and Hernán later, is one of its critical business units.
Kazah, although the former has been the The expansion continued. By 2005, they
company's public figure. Galperín studied bought Deremate.com, their main regional
at the Wharton School of Business at the competitor in e-commerce. With this
University of Pennsylvania (USA), worked at operation, they took control of that
the JP Morgan Bank and later in the company's activities in Brazil, Colombia,
financial area of ​YPF (argentinian oil Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and
national company). When they opened the Venezuela. In 2007, MercadoLibre began
e-commerce company with headquarters trading on the stock market under the
in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1999, at that name «MeLi» and is part of Holding Meli
time, they were competing with Inc., thus becoming the first Argentine firm
DeRemate.com - an online auction on the NASDAQ.
company. MercadoLibre also began as an A year later, in 2008, MercadoLibre
auction platform, but quickly the online acquired 100% of Classified Media Group,
sales platform made it possible to sell at a Inc. (CMG) and its subsidiaries:
fixed price and its users became sellers tucarro.com, tumoto.com,
that were no longer occasional. In the tuinmueble.com, tulancha.com,
marketplace, sellers can publish for free or tuavion.com. That year, it also acquired
by paying a commission on the value of DeRemate.com's operations in Argentina
the merchandise sold, including the cost and Chile, for which it disbursed $ 40
of using the payment system, and a better million. In 2009, it launched its advertising
location in the search listings. For an division and multiple acquisitions
additional cost, they can also offer interest- followed: Autoplaza (2011), Neosur (2013),
free installment payments to their buyers Portal Inmobiliario (2014), KPL, Metros
(Carpinelli, 2017). Cúbicos and Dabee (2015), Monits and
Galperín's personal contacts made it Axado (2016); making its presence in the
possible for the Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst Latin American market robust (See graph).
fund, a very active fund in Latin America, to To continue with its expansion plan, in
invest in the development of their project 2014 it issued a convertible bond for 330
and obtain capital contributions from JP. million dollars, a financing strategy that it
Morgan Partners and Flatiron Funds. A will repeat several times years later.
short time later, in 2001, the pioneer of Argentina, like other Latin American
electronic commerce Ebay became a countries, has structural logistics problems.

pag. 28
Logistic distribution for e-commerce firms delivery[1]. MercadoLibre also offers their
depends on distribution lines that follow a customers financial services. MercadoPago
centralized diagram based on the is a digital financial service of the company
connection with Buenos Aires that overcomes payment barriers. It was in
metropolitan port that was designed at 2017 when MeLi developed its financial
the beginning of the 20th century. The division and incorporated an electronic
network of private post companies only payment system (QR code) available on
covers profitable distribution trails and the almost all mobile phones on the market.
public network has been subject to This compounded on its already strong
financial stress. network effects from the Marketplace, as it
Due to these inconveniencies, in 2013 incorporated unbanked user segments
Mercado Envíos emerged as a logistics who found a facility for their transactions
solution associated with Mercado Libre's e- in this medium. It also enabled users to
commerce division. It was developed to use credit cards and to receive credits
take advantage of economies of scale of directly to their accounts and integrate
existing logistics operators and, of course, them into a bank account. In 2018, it
reduce capital turnover time. Mercado introduced a tool to make financial
Envíos is available in Argentina (through investments, through a common
OCA, Andreani and Correo Argentino), investment fund in partnership with Banco
Brazil (through Correios), Mexico (DHL), Industrial. Towards 2019, it expands its e-
Colombia (Servbinetega) and Chile commerce division incorporating mass
(Chilexpress) and is combined with the consumption under the launch of
Marketplace (Carpinelli, 2017). «SuperMercadoLibre».
In recent years, Mercadolibre
supplemented such infrastructures with its The story in numbers
own warehouses. In 2018, MeLi announced The company shows very fast growth, in
the opening of a distribution center in the line with the trajectory of the main global
Central Market of Buenos Aires, equivalent platform companies. Between 2007 and
to those already installed in Uruguay in 2019[2], its sales in USD multiplied by 27,
2012 and later in Mexico and Brazil. Since the number of employees by 10, and the
2019, the firm has been partnering with stock price by 21[3],
commercial airlines. More recently, in
2020, MeLi announced major investments
in Brazilian logistics to provide constant [1]
https://labsnews.com/en/news/business/mercadolibre
volume during the lockdown period. The
-launches-meli-air-with-4-delivery-planes-fleet-in-
company has a fleet of four aircraft (from brazil/
different airlines) 100% dedicated to its [2] All the financial and operations data about MeLi
corresponds to the 2007-2019 period, unless
deliveries in Brazil.
otherwise clarified. The source is MeLi’s annual report
Besides expanding its delivery fleet, these fillings for the United States Securities and Exchange
investments also involve the installation of Commision, originally reported in US dolars.
new distribution centers and cross- [3] Not reflected in this number, as a consequence of
the pandemic, its market value tripled in just one
dockings and the development of new
year.
tools to reduce the time and cost of

pag. 29
being currently the largest
company according to this parameter. On
the marketplace platform, the volume
traded multiplied by 9, reaching USD 14
billion, and 380 million items in 2019, while
the number of unique buyers multiplied
by 8 (going from 5.5 to 44 million), and that
of sellers for 5.6, (from 2 to 11 million). The
Argentine and 2019, but this was due to expenses
associated with the expansion strategies in
Brazil and Mexico. Beyond this, it is curious
that the gross margin (income minus cost
of sales, before operating expenses) falls
steadily, from 80% in 2008 to 48% in 2019.
The dynamics of the cost components are
very disparate: General and Administrative

payment mechanism grew exponentially, Expenses, and Product and Technology

going from USD 158 million in 2007 to Development (which would be expected
to follow different dynamics), tend to
USD 28.4 billion in 2019, and some 838
stabilize at 10% of revenues. In contrast,
million transactions.
Sales and Marketing tend to decrease from
In terms of geographic segments, the
32% in 2007 to 20% in 2016, when it
primary market is Brazil (64%), followed by
expands strongly, reaching 36% in 2019. As
Argentina (20%) and Mexico (12%), in
mentioned, the cost of sales grows
addition to a set of Latin American
steadily, from 22% in 2005 to 52% in 2019
countries that complete the remaining 4%
(mirroring the drop in gross margin). The
(Uruguay, Colombia, Chile, Peru,
ratio of costs over employees shows
Venezuela, Ecuador, Costa Rica,
sustained growth, either considering the
Dominican Republic, Panama, Bolivia,
cost of sales, operations, or total. This may
Guatemala, Paraguay, Nicaragua,
suggest a change in the composition of
Honduras and El Salvador). The evolution spending towards greater outsourcing of
by country shows a similar behavior, led by services and acquisition of assets. Anyhow,
Argentina and Brazil (x40), and in second despite the number of employees
place Mexico and others (x30). Even so, the multiplied by more than 10, the average
trajectories were different: While Argentina total income per employee has multiplied
shows a linear growth evolution, the by 2.6. This means that while in 2007 each
expansion in Brazil and especially Mexico employee contributed an average of USD
resembles an exponential one (in Mexico 91 thousand per year, in 2019 they
sales multiplied by more than 5 in the last contributed USD 237 thousand.
two years, reaching USD 275 million). For
the whole period considered, almost 2/3 of Analysis of MeLi business
the growth in sales is explained by Brazil, There is a strong argument that the recent
20% by Argentina, 12% by Mexico and 3% extraordinary levels of capitalization of
by other countries. For Argentina and many publicly traded online companies
Brazil, growth is slightly led by had a lot to do with investors' beliefs that
MercadoPago, while in Mexico it is led by entrepreneurial companies had business
Marketplace. In terms of results, and unlike models with growth potential that was
Amazon's trajectory, MeLi has presented inherently superior to offline models.

consistently high operating margins, How does the Marketplace work in MeLi?

oscillating between 25% and 35% of sales In Argentina, when a sale is made through
the Mercado Libre site, the seller can
between 2007 and 2016. In 2017 it
collapsed, and remained negative in 2018

pag. 30
choose zero commission with shallow although at a lower price (USD 86 to USD
exposure, and commission from 13% to 37), taking their annual spending from USD
27% of the published value for products 274 to USD 316. The average margin
with good exposure. The accreditation is received by MeLi for each item increases
carried out in an account within the steadily, almost doubling between ends,
system itself after a period of five days going from 4.6% in 2007 to 8.6% in 2019.
from the moment the buyer received their Consequently, the margin per buyer also
product. When the transactions were paid increases, although multiplying by 3.
through funds in a MercadoPago account, Another way to read this number is that its
the commission drops to 5.5% plus the cost of acquiring new buyers has
Value Added Tax (VAT) if the accreditation decreased, which constitutes a clear
is immediate. This rate is higher than the expression of the network effects. From
one that a business would pay to credit its the seller's point of view, on average, the
sales through a traditional commercial number of items he sells multiplied by 4,
bank (2.15% in credit and 1.1% in debit), while his income grew 65%, reaching USD
although in banks, the crediting period 1,250 per year.
ends up being longer (10 business days) Although MercadoLibre is known as an e-
and this factor ends up constituting an commerce platform, as we previously
advantage in favor of the platform argued, it is much more than that, and the
(Artopoulos et al., 2019). As the system thus data illustrates this.
becomes more advantageous compared While the revenues associated with the
to credit cards and other means of Marketplace multiplied by 17, the evolution
payment, the platform attracted many of the Non-marketplace or MercadoPago
consumers and sellers. At the same time, segment stands out particularly, which in
MercadoPago exempts small businesses the same period multiplied by 70. Thus, it
from tax withholding, contributing to the grew from representing 11% to 48% of sales
previous trend. Platform-mediated revenue. While Marketplace's revenues
marketplaces were among the earliest show more volatility, MercadoPago's sales
types of internet websites (Kenney et al are much more stable and show a
2018). The expansion of the marketplace constant contribution to growth, with a
platform in MeLi is expressed in the permanent and robust level jump in 2017.
increase in the number of unique users, MeLi's foray into financial services was
both sellers (x5.5) and buyers (x8). The carried out through its MercadoPago and
relationship between the two increased by MercadoCrédito divisions. This has been
43%, adding almost an extra buyer for under the striking slogan “democratize
each seller. This implies a relatively greater trade and money to impact the region's
concentration within the platform, development.” MercadoPago invoices for
although the absolute level is low (4 buyers payment processing and MercadoCrédito
per seller). A fundamental indicator is that grants credits to MercadoLibre vendors
MeLi managed to steadily expand both the and consumers.
number of buyers and the average Mercado Pago is an integrated digital
spending. On average, each user buys payments solution that complements the
more products (3.2 to 8.6 items), Marketplace. The tool is designed to

pag. 31
facilitate and formalize transactions Like what happens in the Marketplace, in
between buyers and sellers on the MercadoPago the volume of operations
MercadoLibre platform and outside of it, grows steadily, while the average amount
providing a mechanism that allows the progressively falls, going from USD 121 in
user to send or receive money and finance 2007 to USD 34 in 2019. This verifies a
payments. It is currently available in model that aims to capture a high volume
Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, of small daily transactions beyond those
Venezuela, Uruguay and Peru. Its adoption carried out in the Marketplace. As the use
is required for all sellers’ publications, of MercadoPago for Marketplace
except classifieds, while buyers can choose operations grows, reaching 93% in 2019,
to pay on delivery if the seller grants that the total volume traded in MercadoPagois
option as available. double that of Marketplace. In terms of
Mercado Pago is the only digital payment gross margin, it has stabilized in recent
method accepted by Mercado Libre in the years in the order of 4% per transaction.
Marketplace. Mercado Pago mediates According to calculations by the Bank for
transactions so that the money paid by International Settlements (BIS), Mercado
buyers is retained by the tool until the Crédito managed to place 30% of its loans
products purchased are delivered. The in Argentina in 2017, which would be
commission for using Mercado Pago is classified as High Risk in the banking
included in the sales commission charged industry, with a loss ratio that however did
to sellers: sellers pay the same value not exceed 2, 8%, reaching firms that the
whether they use the solution. traditional banking system does not
Outside the Marketplace, the service was attract. With its scoring model, Mercado
designed to serve the growing demand for Libre can offer credit and, in turn,
Internet payments in Latin America. It financially include these merchants. It is
allows companies, businesses, or interesting to note that the “high risk”
individuals to send money and collect segment's loss ratio is 2.8%, similar to the
their sales through different digital premium SME segment in traditional
channels: their website, social networks, banks. These simple statistics indicate that
mobile applications, and even through e- Mercado Libre's internal rating system is
mails, in exchange for a commission on more discriminatory than a traditional
the transacted volume. In the last quarter credit bureau and allows the company to
of 2016, small loans began to be offered to serve suppliers that would otherwise be
Mercado Libre buyers for consumption and excluded from credit provision.
sellers for working capital, based on their However, it remains to be verified whether
history of operations on the platform, an internal rating system based on
giving them access to the financial market, machine learning techniques and data
and doing so entirely digitally. This obtained from the e-commerce platform
initiative, called Mercado Crédito, seeks to can outperform (ex-post) more traditional
help small and medium sellers scale their models in predicting defaults over a
businesses and give buyers financial tools complete business and financial cycle. The
to make purchases, especially those accumulation of data emerges as a key
unbanked. advantage of vertical integration: keeping

pag. 32
property operations in house also keeps MercadoPago and Mercado Envíos ensures
field data in-house, creating opportunities a 40% higher margin per transaction,
for analysis and experimentation to ease expanding a 8.6% margin in the
the inevitable frictions of circulation Marketplace to a 12.2% total, in 2019.
(Fields, D., 2019).
The financial division of MeLi expanded Rethinking extraction, e-commerce,
towards the end of 2019. In that year, the and finance through platforms
world's leading electronic payment To conclude, we review the logic within
platform PayPal made a strategic alliance MeLi’s expansion through the lens of
with MercadoLibre to integrate its valorization logics of extraction based on
payment services in Mexico and Brazil, for finance and logistics Mezzadra and
which it disbursed 750 million dollars. Neilson (2017, 2019).
Meanwhile, in Argentina it was in charge of The conception of platforms understood as
launching Point Plus, its debit, credit, and digital infrastructures and key devices for
prepaid card reader with which sellers can extraction has been presented in various
make all payments directly from the studies on the subject (Mezzadra and
terminal and without the need for a cell Neilson 2017, Fumagalli, 2018, Srnicek,
phone. 2018, Vercellone, 2020).
In an overview, we find a feedback Data is a key resource of the platform
between MeLi's operations: at first, economy. It is used to produce monetary
Marketplace grows rapidly, generating a value for the large platforms that buy and
high volume of transactions. During that sell information (Casilli, 2017). For instance,
time, MercadoPago primarily acts as a in 2017, the income from selling data to
facilitator for these transactions while marketing companies amounted to 98% of
developing and refining this payment the revenues of Facebook and 86% of the
platform. This allows MercadoPago to start revenues of Google (Schwarz, 2019, p. 3).
growing outside of Marketplace and Platforms are fueled by their access to «big
achieve a sustainable transaction volume, data» (searches, purchases, and post form
overcoming the «chicken-and-egg participants using their technology) and it
problem» (Caillaud and Jullien, 2003). With also becomes a critical component of
that business consolidated, the use of FinTech platforms (Dhar and Stein, 2017).
MercadoPago in Marketplace began to be In this sense, Neilson and Rossiter (2020)
universalized, resulting in a vast captive argue that data has become a kind of
market. Finally, the launch and later currency («data is the new oil»). Following
expansion of Mercado Envíos further Sing (2017), data is directly and minutely
complete this circle: Tighter control of about actual social and physical facts:
logistics guarantees better customer people, behaviours, interactions, machines
satisfaction, more control over sellers, and and other artefacts, and natural things. The
overall more transactions and thus income more local data is better because that
for MeLi. This is clearly expressed in makes it truer to particular facts. Therefore,
financial metrics: Although the margins personal data has one of the highest
per transaction in Marketplace had already values (Sing, 2017).
been growing, the joint operation with Consequently, the production of forms of

pag. 33
life are increasingly central to capitalist operations. MeLi’s data extraction is
valorization. In this sense, the extraction of founded on its role as intermediary, where
communicative and cognitive capital that it exploits the networks created, including
is at the heart of today’s capitalist mode of the cognitive capital from sellers in
production (Hardt and Negri, 2009). The understanding consumer's preferences
idea highlighted is that not only when the and tastes, but also in consumers' patterns
operation of capital plunder the of search and buy. All this is possible
materiality of the Earth and biosphere, but because of the digital nature of the
also when they encounter and drawn on platform, where all objects and activities
forms and practices of human cooperation are coded and recorded as data. Such as in
and sociality that are external to them, spaces such as US or the EU the search for
that we can say «extraction is at stake» buying a product starts directly in Amazon,
(Mezzadra and Neilson, 2019:138) because in most Latin America this role is played by
capital does not directly organize the MeLi. As it expands towards new markets,
relations of social cooperation upon which it is increasingly indispensable for everyday
data economies rest. life, and becomes an general infrastructure
Vercellone (2020) points out that as big for extraction. Synergetic possibilities
data extraction refers to capturing our emerge when managing a large and varied
identities and the footprints produced by portfolio of investments in platform
our social interactions on the Internet, the companies and other data-centric
extraction mechanism becomes more businesses (van Doorn and Badger, 2020).
powerful as the network effect expands. The incursion into activities in the financial
Moreover, as the volume of data continues sphere in the case described is closely
to increase, the artificial intelligence related to the previously described
functionality for interpreting and acting on mechanisms. These types of companies
it automatically (Dhar and Stein, 2017). So, known under the name Fin / BigTech have
the economic benefits of owning data in the advantage of being able to exploit the
terms of transforming it into a profitable information provided by their primary
asset increases with the volume of data business, such as electronic commerce,
and this gives an advantage to first movers without the need for additional
(UNCTAD, 2018). documentation from users (Frost et al.,
Platforms also implement the strategy of 2019). FinTech today is often seen as a
constantly epxanding user engagement uniquely recent marriage of financial
through user interface and experience services and information technology.
design, creating compulsory behavior in However, the interlinkage of finance and
consumers. This is done for the ultimate technology has a long history. In fact,
purpose of extracting (more) data from the financial and technology development
users. This set mechanisms explains why have long been intertwined and mutually
platform companies enjoy rapid and reinforcing (Arner et al., 2015). We can
exponential growth and unprecedented think that financial innovations of the past
capital accumulation over a relatively short decades are driven by an attempt to
period (Srnicek, 2018). As we have seen, «expand the operational space of
these logics are the basis behind MeLi’s advanced capitalism» (Sassen, 2010, 20).

pag. 34
Despite treating them as something new, excluded from the formal bank credit
Fin / BigTech derived from communication market. Such an expansion of the user
and the Internet have been developing base could facilitate financial inclusion in
intensively since the 1980s. First, market niches where financing
digitization allowed capital to completely opportunities are scarce. Thus, the use of
restructure informational work and machine learning could have some
requalify many activities in the financial advantages because the direct and rapid
world (Miguez, 2008). There was a stage of assessment of credit risk improves the
implementation of these services during underwriting process, is based on
the decades of 1980 and 1990, a phase of information derived from the relationships
growing adoption as we advanced towards between customers and could prevent, in
the 21st century and a stretch coinciding some cases, that the decision is made by
with the current moment in which we can the actions of a single person (Frost et al.,
speak of a progressive diffusion of this 2019). Fintech lenders may be better able
digitization combined with big data to screen potential borrowers, leveraging
(Carbó Valverde, 2017). Perhaps a more alternative sources of information and the
precise term for this type of firm comes big data approaches inherent in
from the concept of the name BigTech technology-based lending (Dhar and Stein,
who benefit from having a large existing 2017). Machine learning -and also Artificial
customer base and from collecting and Intelligence (AI)- use recursive techniques
analyzing their customer data in addition to update datasets in ways that allow
to having significant resources and the them to evolve and improve their
possibility of accessing capital and functionality within institutional settings
financing at a lower cost than some large (Neilson and Rossiter, 2020). Moreover, by
financial groups (Financial Stability Board, using AI, they achieve a competitive
2019). advantage for being able to «predict and
Buchak et al (2018) points that in the last modify human behaviour as means to
decade, the consumer finance market has produce revenue and market control»
undergone a dramatic change. (Zuboff, 2015, p. 76).
Intermediation has shifted from traditional Part of this advantage over traditional
banks to shadow banks: non-depository banks was expressed in the statements of
institutions falling outside the scope of Galperín himself who asserted regarding
traditional banking regulation. In this the latter (the banks): «I do not see them
context, Fin / BigTech companies as competitors, since they target different
intensively use machine learning to audiences» and «They are anachronistic
perform risk ratings and grant credits. and inefficient, and they threaten us every
This renewed approach to rating could day» in an interview reproduced in the
provide an advantage over traditional book Argentina Innovadora (Editorial
banks, where it is common practice to rely Sudamericana).
heavily on the judgment of the loan officer These ideas clearly express MeLi’s vision on
to approve or reject a potential client. how to exploit user data, network effects
The increased data resources could open and market integration to enhance their
the possibility for BigTech lenders to lend financial businesses.
to borrowers who were previously
pag. 35
At the same time, the company has been speed, cost-efficiency and flexibility of
able to overcome regulatory obstacles in commodity flows are central to
Argentina in this area. Following Orzanco competition and to the accumulation
(2018), while in Brazil Mercado Pago is process. Logistics industry facilitates the
obliged to allocate 100% of wallet circulation of capital by enhancing the
balances in public securities that pay the flexibility, or «agility» of commodity flows
monetary policy rate (currently 6.5% per (Danyluk, 2018) and has become central to
year in reais), in Argentina it is released the ongoing transformations of
from this obligation by provision of the contemporary capitalism (Mezzadra and
BCRA (Argentinian Central Bank). In turn, Neilson, 2015). In this context, capital has
MeLi was able to circumvent a market de- now new technology tools for
concentration measure given that the manipulating space and as Cowen (2014, p.
Central Bank prohibits financial entities 205) notes, «location has been supplanted
from carrying out operations outside the by a new force in business: logistics».
sector. In these cases, admitting that the Recent research clarified how logistics
two companies that form the same entity operations are not a neutral mechanism, in
(here MercadoLibre, a commercial other words a simple device to manage
company with a dominant position, with commodities in the most efficient way.
Mercado Crédito) would require de- They are also a site of power and struggle
concentration measures or a new (Neilson 2012; Cuppini, Frapporti and
regulation to suit it. Pirone, 2015) which display an extractive
Finally, another counterpart to this process dimension, shaping and commanding
of financialization and data extraction was heterogeneous productive environments
the massive investment in the circulation (Mezzadra and Neilson, 2015), a topic that
of commodities: large-scale investments in needs further research in Latin America
transportation and communication context.
infrastructures by MeLi, especially in its Overall, the marketplace platform allowed
distribution centers. They are strategically the company to extract and generate
installed to accelerate deliveries to end value from its users' data. Then it
customers and serve as vital levers to introduces financial operations to
promote the accumulation of capital and motorize it. But this quickly becomes a
expand its geographical frontiers. source that further accelerates expansion
«Delivering to the customer is an (with more users). Finally, the financial
obsession» said MeLi’s founder. Rumours accumulation allows it to invest in its own
that MeLi may be interested in buying the logistics developments, which in turn
Brazilian state postal network «Correios», allow it to accelerate its growth again
for its logistics infrastructure is another (particularly in Brazil and especially
example of how this dimension became Mexico, today its most critical markets).
central to the company. As it was suggested by Montalban et al.
But the delivery time is not only a main (2019) the case described showed that the
concern of retail companies in Latin key to their competitive advantage lies
America. This formulation has its roots in with their ability to enlarge the crowd, to
many Marx’s economic writings where the

pag. 36
mobilize digital infrastructure and to inter- References
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 3

C H A P T E R
C H A P T E R

3
A critical engagement with platforms
through patent analysis
Lungani Nelson Hlongwa
National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan

The plight of platform workers against Understandably, most research on

platform companies has attracted much platforms has been conducted from the
scholarly attention in recent years. While perspective of those most affected by
some scholars have exposed how race, them—platform workers. To gain an
gender, and class mediate platform labor understanding of the working conditions
(Hua & Ray, 2018; Van Doorn, 2017), others on platforms, some researchers
have shown how platformization has interviewed platform workers (Malin &
redefined the very meaning of labor (Casilli Chandler, 2016; Rosenblat, 2018), while
& Posada, 2019; Rosenblat & Stark, 2016). others surveyed online forums for
Sources of friction between workers and comments made by platform workers
platforms include, among others, issues (Karanović, Berends, & Engel, 2020;
related to pay, information asymmetries, Möhlmann & Zalmanson, 2017; Rosenblat,
algorithmic management, and 2018).
marketplace management (DeVault, The studies cited above have contributed
Figueroa, Kotler, Maffie & Wu, 2019). much to understanding the working

pag. 40
conditions on platforms.
The methodologies adopted by these
studies expose the anxieties and
grievances associated with platform labor.
As Nieborg, Duffy, and Poell (2020) point
out, qualitative methods, particularly
interviews, remain relevant for studying
platforms. However, platforms' growing
influence on culture calls for new, or at
least updated, methodologies (Nieborg et
al., 2020). This article therefore aims to
supplement platform research by
providing another perspective to the study
of these digital infrastructures. The author
proposes the use of patent data to view
platforms from the perspective of their
developers. It is argued that such an angle
can help build a more critical engagement
with these digital intermediaries that
increasingly shape labor and social life. To
protect their inventions and maintain a
competitive advantage, companies often
seek intellectual property protection in the
form of patents. In these documents,
companies disclose their inventions to the
public in exchange for a temporary, state-
granted monopoly. Since patents contain
ideas about novel inventions and how they
may be used in society, they are a valuable
resource for critically examining the logic
and priorities of those who file them.
Scholars from economic, legal, business,
and technology environments have long
relied on patent documents to monitor
innovation (Abraham & Moitra, 2001), track
technological development (Tsuji, 2012),
and assess firm competition (Jun & Park,
2016). However, since patents are filed with
the social world in mind, they are too
important to be left exclusively to lawyers,
economists, business, and technology
practitioners. Patents should also be of
interest to social scientists not so much
pag. 41
because of their technical contents but
because of the social implications of the
technologies contained in them.
This study uses patents by Uber and Lyft—
two of the most popular ride-hailing
platforms in the US—to show how patents
may be used for studying platforms. The
author selected these companies for two
important reasons. First, both Uber and
Lyft have been subjects of the ongoing
‘techlash’—a term used by journalists to
refer to the growing criticism of platform
companies (Nieborg et al., 2020). Second,
like many companies in the technology
industry, Uber and Lyft have been filing for
patents to protect their inventions. These
two reasons make Uber and Lyft ideal case
studies for demonstrating critical patent
analysis as a methodology. The following
section briefly discusses the notion of
platformization and its discontent. The
article then defines the methodology of
critical patent analysis and refers to other
studies that made similar uses of patent
data. Finally, the article will reflect on the
patent data presented and draw from
platform research to conceptualize the
platform as a digital panopticon.
Platformization and its discontent
The notion of the ‘platform’ refers to digital
intermediaries that bring together
different users such as customers, service
providers, advertisers, producers, and
suppliers (Srnicek, 2017). At the top of the
list in terms of wealth are companies like
Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Google,
which Galloway (2017) refers to as the “four
horsemen of the data apocalypse” (p.10).
Other popular platforms include Uber,
Amazon, and Airbnb in the transportation,
e-commerce, and accommodation sectors,
respectively. Srnicek (2017) distinguishes
five different types of platforms: even reward or punish those who go
advertising, cloud, industrial, product, and against their algorithmic "managers". The
lean platforms. main contention with the algorithmic
According to Srnicek (2017), lean platforms management of labor stems from the
operate through a hyper-outsourced information and power imbalance
model to keep the ownership of assets to a between platform workers and platform
minimum. All that remains for owners of owners (Jarrahi & Sutherland, 2019;
lean platforms, Srnicek (2017) argues, is the Möhlmann & Zalmanson, 2017). Such
bare minimum, which is the platform's asymmetries are indeed a feature of the
maintenance. There are, however, some platform and are key for controlling
features that most platforms have in workers (Rosenblat & Stark, 2016). On
common, and highlighting some of them platforms like Uber and Lyft, algorithms do
can shed light on what platforms are and the work of middle managers by
the work they do. One of the most defining performing tasks such as matching service
feature of platforms is their heavy reliance requestors and service providers, assigning
on data. Casilli and Posada (2019), as do work, and evaluating worker performance
many other scholars (Rosenblat, 2018; (Jarrahi & Sutherland, 2019). Much of the
Fumagalli, Lucarelli, Musolino & Rocchi, discontent with platforms is that workers
2018), contend that platforms create value do not know how the decisions that affect
by capturing and exploiting their user them are made. In their bid to improve
data. These data are used for various their working conditions, workers have
purposes, such as gaining insights on been calling, among other things, for more
customer preferences, controlling workers, algorithmic transparency (Booth, 2020).
and forming the foundation for new Such transparency, according to Booth will
products and services (Srnicek, 2017). allow workers to “organise and build
Sadowski (2019) suggests that we might collective bargaining power over terms of
think of platforms’ logic to extract all data, work and pay in a way that is currently
from all sources, through any means impossible.”
possible as “accumulation by extraction” Uber and Lyft fall under the category of
(p.9). For platforms, data has been likened lean platforms. These two companies
to oil that must be extracted, refined, and exemplify the concepts of ‘sharing’, ‘gig’, or
used for various purposes (Srnicek, 2017). ‘on-demand’ economies (Malin & Chandler,
On platforms, algorithms crunch through 2016). Typically, neither company owns the
data to find patterns, rank users and vehicles, which are the main physical
content, target specific consumers while assets used to create value. Also, at the
simultaneously optimizing the platform time of writing, neither company officially
itself. The more data a platform has, the recognizes its drivers as employees but as
more uses can be found for them. ‘independent contractors.’ According to
Another defining feature of platforms that many observers, platform companies such
is more specific to lean platforms is their as Uber and Lyft strategically mislabel their
firm control over labor. Such platforms are workers so that they are not obliged to
underpinned by algorithms that set provide worker benefits such as paid sick
working standards, manage workers, and leave, health insurance, and pension

pag. 42
benefits (Fleming, Rhodes & Yu, 2019; Van optimize their code (Picard, 2019). To
Doorn, 2017). The classifying of drivers as borrow words from Delfanti and Frey
‘independent contractors’ contributes (2020), who also observed worker-enabled
much to their discontent and precarity automation at Amazon, we may say that
(Malin & Chandler, 2016). For instance, with Uber and Lyft drivers are the “living
severe travel restrictions imposed appendages” to these platforms since they
worldwide because of the global Covid-19 extend their automation.
pandemic, many platform workers were
left with no work and with no income Critical Patent Analysis
(Dubal & Whittaker, 2020). The struggle for According to the World Intellectual
drivers to be recognized as employees Property Organization (WIPO), a patent is
continues. “an exclusive right granted for an
Despite the push by workers and city invention, which is a product or a process
governments to recognize platform that provides, in general, a new way of
workers as employees, platform doing something, or offers a new technical
companies have not favored such a move. solution to a problem” (WIPO, 2019). Once
Instead, companies like Uber and Lyft are a patent has been granted to an inventor,
aiming to go autonomous in the future. no other party may benefit economically
However, to fully automate their ride- from the invention. Patents are therefore
hailing platforms, these companies still exclusionary devices and are key to
need to train their autonomous vehicles maintaining a competitive advantage for
using data collected from their present some firms. Anatomically, a patent
users—both workers and customers. document comprises several components,
Indeed, as Casilli and Posada (2019) including the title of the invention, an
argued, platform labor is a prerequisite for abstract, claims about the invention, and a
automation. The execution of micro-tasks description section.
such as liking, posting, or commenting is To conduct a critical analysis of patents is
necessary to train artificial intelligence to grapple with patent data in order to
models using hundreds of millions of question the technology described in
human judgments, preferences, and these documents and the logic of those
behaviors (Casilli and Posada, 2019). who file them. Whereas patent analysis
To make automation possible, platforms simply looks at the technology described
recruit hundreds of millions of people to in patents, critical patent analysis is more
take part as users, customers, or mere concerned with the social implications of
participants (Casilli and Posada, 2019). those inventions. The study by Delfanti and
With Uber and Lyft investing in self-driving Frey (2020), where they adopt a critical
cars, it can be expected that they will view of Amazon’s patents, provides a good
leverage the data they are collecting to example of what is meant by ‘critical
train their autonomous vehicles. As patent analysis.’ Hlongwa (2020) also uses
Antonio Casilli rightfully points out in En this methodology to examine how the
attendant les robots. Enquête sur le travail algorithmic city is configured. In short,
du clic that AI technologies depend on critical patent analysis is a mode of
data extracted from crowds of workers to revealing the politics embedded in the

pag. 43
substrate of inventions. Figure 2 shows the patent application
To retrieve and analyze patents by Uber trends for both Uber and Lyft in the period
and Lyft, an online tool called 2011 to 2019. Based on figure 2, we see that
PatentInspiration was used. both companies have been increasing
A simple search containing the two their patenting activity in recent years. The
companies’ names was conducted to increase in patenting activity suggests that
recall patents filed from January 2010 to both companies are actively innovating to
September 5th, 2020—the day the search improve their platforms.
was performed. Figure 1 shows the search Using patent classification codes, it is
query used in PatentInspiration, which possible to categorize patents by
returned 2181 patents. Of the 2181 patents, technology or function. One of the most
1860 belonged to Uber and 321 belonged common patent classification schemes is
to Lyft. the CPC system (Cooperative Patent

Figure 1: Search query

Figure 2: Number of patents by year for Uber and Lyft (N = 2181)

pag. 44
Figure 3: Top ten CPC codes of patents by Uber and Lyft

Figure 4: Types of data and information Figure 5: Functions of algorithms

Classification), which was jointly developed suggesting that the future of ride-hailing is
by the United States Patent and indeed autonomous. Although not
Trademark Office (USPTO) and the appearing among the top ten, other codes
European Patent Office (EPO) in 2010. worth pointing out are H04L67/306 (user
Figure 3 shows the top ten CPC codes for profile) and G06N20/00 (machine
Uber and Lyft’s patents. Over 350 patents learning). The former signifies the
were assigned the code G06Q50/30, which centrality of user profiles on these
relates to transportation and platforms while the latter points to the use
communications technologies. Second on of a powerful technology to learn user
the list is the CPC code G05D1/0088, which behavior. Figure 4 shows the types of data
relates to technologies for autonomous mentioned by Uber and Lyft’s patents. The
decision making. Upon inspecting the types of data most mentioned are sensor,
patents under G05D1/0088, most map, location, historical, and image data.
appeared to be for autonomous vehicles, Other forms of data significantly

pag. 45
Figure 6: Exemplary patents making use of machine learning

mentioned were cellular, training, vehicle, a wide range of functions, such as

real-time and user-specific data. calculating, matching, training, predicting,
As will be shown from the patents later, optimizing, and many other tasks. Having
these data are collected via many provided a macro perspective of Uber's
sensors from the vehicle or via mobile and Lyft’s patents, the rest of this section
device sensors of both drivers and focuses on specific exemplary patents to
passengers. show what Uber and Lyft’s inventions
To get a sense of the functions of make possible.
algorithms, the search query <algorithm Exemplary patents were identified and
for verb:* OR algorithm to verb:* OR grouped into three categories: machine
algorithm that verb:*> was entered in learning, administration and management,
PatentInspiration's text analysis function. and safety management. Figure 6 provides
According to figure 5, algorithms perform exemplary patents by Uber and Lyft

pag. 46
Figure 7: Exemplary patents for platform administration and management

Figure 8: Exemplary patents for safety management

pag. 47
related to machine learning. The first Interventions may range from ‘low impact
patent titled Systems and methods for interventions’ such as electronic messages
detecting and recording anomalous sent to drivers’ mobile devices, to ‘high
vehicle events uses vehicle telemetry data impact interventions’ such as dismissal
to train machine learning algorithms to from the Uber platform. The patent by Lyft
drive autonomous vehicles. This patent titled Assigning rides based on probability
also mentions the collection of data of provider acceptance uses machine
through other means, such as using driver- learning techniques to assign rides based
facing cameras and microphones to on the probability that drivers will accept
collect contextual data on drivers. them. The machine learning model used
The second patent by Lyft aims to make to compute acceptance probability uses
drivers’ vehicles feel less foreign for data from past accepted or rejected trips.
passengers. The invention uses machine Based on this patent, it is easy to see how
learning techniques to infer what a ‘just drive’ mentality is being promoted
passengers might prefer based on on the Lyft platform. Rejecting rides for
historical preferences on past trips. whatever reason may indeed be factored
Although this invention leverages Lyft’s into the assignment of future rides.
knowledge of passengers based on their Figure 7 shows exemplary patents related
user profiles, it also collects data on to the administration and management of
passengers using various mobile device the Uber and Lyft platforms. The first
sensors, such as cameras, microphones, invention by Lyft is for placing drivers in a
and infrared sensors. The third patent by certain area in a priority queue. Driver
Uber aims to encourage drivers to remain placement is determined by many factors
on predetermined routes. Drivers may be such as their performance relative to
awarded points for passing checkpoints others, or how long the driver had to wait
and rerouted when deviations are in the queue previously. The second patent
detected. There are several studies that by Uber titled Dispatch system for
provide more insights into the politics matching drivers and users clearly shows
relating to routes (see Rosenblat & Stark, the valorization of labor on the platform.
2016 and Rosenblat, 2018). The description of the patent reads:
Uber’s patent titled Predicting safety
incidents using machine learning The matching module may set a
employs machine learning techniques to predetermined threshold that a driver
predict which drivers are more likely to be must meet before being selected (e.g., a
involved in safety incidents. Safety data are 70% probability that the driver will receive
collected on drivers and used to generate a 5-star rating), and/or the matching
safety prediction models. This invention module may automatically select the
thus allows Uber to select and apply proximate driver attaining a highest
interventions for drivers likely to be optimization score (Truong, Purdy &
engaged in safety incidents. Mawas, 2017).
These interventions, according to the
patent, reduce the likelihood that the This patent shows why ratings are so
predicted safety incident will occur. important to drivers. The third patent by

pag. 48
 Uber provides means for passengers to natural language processing. Using textual
give feedback after a transportation feedback from passengers, the invention
service. If the passenger provides a rating can analyze textual data to determine
equal to or higher than a predetermined drivers’ risk value.
rating, they may specify the positive
aspects of the ride. If the passenger The Platform as a Panoptic System
provides a rating lower than the Surveillance systems have long been
predetermined rating, they will also be considered an integral part of the just-in-
requested to specify which aspects of the time economy (Sewell & Wilkinson, 1992).
service were unsatisfactory. This patent Based on the patent data presented in this
provides a good example of how platforms study and many other studies on platforms
outsource quality control (Van Doorn, (Jarrahi & Sutherland, 2019; Möhlmann &
2017). Figure 8 presents patents related to Zalmanson, 2017), surveillance is also a key
safety management. The first patent by feature of the platform. Using the concept
Uber provides intervention measures to of the Panopticon as conceptualized by
drivers exhibiting safety risks, such as poor Jeremy Bentham and later by Michel
driving, poor attitude, abusive language, Foucault, this section aims to highlight the
and so forth. The data used to classify operationalization of surveillance by
drivers may be obtained from vehicle platforms for controlling and governing
telemetry data, passenger feedback, or platform workers. It is argued that lean
from the various sensors on driver or platforms such as Uber and Lyft are
passenger smartphones (sensors include essentially digital panopticons that control
motion, audio, or camera). labor by making workers permanently
The second patent by Uber selects routes visible while keeping their ‘algorithmic
for drivers according to their risk value watchers’ invisible. Because of permanent
scores. This invention uses machine visibility, workers are conditioned to
learning tools to calculate the risk value of behave in a way that reinforces the
drivers based on, for example, how many principles of the platform.
hours the driver has been on duty and the In 1791, the English legislative reformer,
driver’s historical driving characteristics. Jeremy Bentham, published a proposal of
The patent also mentions that the what he believed was an innovative prison
platform may obtain data from the driver’s model—the panopticon (Strub, 1989). The
vehicle or computing device in panoptic prison's major features were a
determining the driver’s current or circular array of prison cells with a guard
historical driving characteristics. The tower in the middle. The guard in the
patent also mentions that the platform tower could observe any inmate at any
may obtain data from the driver’s vehicle time without being seen by the prisoners.
or computing device in determining the Aware of being watched, prisoners would
driver’s current or historical driving self-discipline and behave in a manner
characteristics, indicating a state of which they thought was promoted by the
tiredness, inebriation, and so forth. The watchers. In Discipline and Punish,
final invention by Uber claims to Foucault explains how panoptic
determine the safety risk of a driver using disciplinary power works.

pag. 49
He who is subjected to a field of visibility, conduct. However, this is another question
and who knows it, assumes responsibility altogether that falls beyond the scope of
for the constraints of power; he makes this paper. What can be said, however, is
them play spontaneously upon himself; that surveillance, even in its potentiality,
he inscribes in himself the power relation has the power to influence workers’
in which he simultaneously plays both behaviors to the benefit of platform
roles; he becomes the principle of his own owners. Beyond controlling and governing
subjection (Foucault, 1977 p. 202-203). drivers, panopticism on platforms like Uber
and Lyft also plays another role—
Bentham thought that such a system optimizing the platform towards higher
could be applied in any establishment levels of automation. We see, for example,
where people must be kept under how the data extracted from drivers and
inspection. These include houses of passengers are used to train machine
correction, workhouses, manufactories, learning models to drive autonomous
mad-houses, hospitals, and schools vehicles. This human-machine relationship
(Bentham, 1791). may be referred to as the ‘panoptic mode
The principles of platform surveillance, of automation’ or ‘panoptic-enable
which are at the core of Uber and Lyft automation.’
platforms, are much the same as the ‘ideal The goal of platform panopticism is to
prison’ envisioned by Jeremy Bentham. engineer workers’ behaviors through
Although, with platforms, the ‘power of the surveillance. Platform owners set the
gaze’ seems to have been largely replaced working standards with which workers
by the ‘power of computation,’ the threat must comply. These are similar standards
of permanent visibility remains. The upon which future automated systems will
patents presented in this study revealed be built. Using algorithms and a plethora
that it is entirely possible that drivers are of sensors, platform owners can observe
constantly being monitored using a wide drivers—turning their every action into
array of sensors on their vehicles and the machine-readable signals. Aware of being
mobile devices of both drivers and watched, drivers behave ‘accordingly’,
passengers. Uber and Lyft vehicles are thereby reinforcing the standards of the
essentially ‘panopticism on wheels.’ As platform while simultaneously providing
Sheridan (2016) accurately points out, the plenty of data for future automated
panopticon “has been recast in security systems. This, however, is not to say that
cameras and algorithms, police presence, drivers are powerless or that they all
and data trawlers” (p.3). Therefore, in behave uniformly on platforms. Indeed,
today's digital age, where visibility is more some studies show how drivers are
enhanced, the notion of the panopticon building resistance by learning the rules of
appears more relevant than it was in the the platform (Allen-Robertson, 2017).
nineteenth century (Manokha, 2018). How then does platform panopticism fit
To think of platforms as panoptic into the larger picture of platform
assemblages is to recognize not only the capitalism as described by Srnicek (2017)?
surveillance of platform workers but also In short, platform panopticism is a
how that surveillance shapes workers’ function of what Zuboff (2019) refers to as

pag. 50
surveillance capitalism. While surveillance platforms was shown to contribute to the
capitalism as conceptualized by Zuboff automation of these platforms. This
(2019) is an economic model centered on human-machine relationship was referred
the extraction and commodification of to as the ‘panoptic mode of automation’ or
user data, platform panopticism as ‘panoptic-enabled automation.’ As a final
described here refers to the strategic point, two shortcomings of the proposed
engineering of workers’ behaviors by methodology are worth pointing out. First,
operationalizing surveillance. patents contain ideas that may not
Through performance scores and other necessarily find real technological
quality control measures, workers are applications. Second, and probably most
aware that they are being watched and constraining, not all companies patent
therefore behave themselves in a manner their inventions and those that do may
desired by platform owners. deliberately omit certain information.
Workers’ behaviors are then turned into Despite these limitations, the patent data
data and form the building blocks for presented in this study correspond to the
future automated systems. This is the stories, fears and suspicions reported by
panoptic mode of automation. Uber and Uber and Lyft drivers. In other words, the
Lyft are therefore part of the surveillance techniques employed by these platforms,
capitalists that Zuboff (2019) refers to in as shown by their patents, match the
her book titled The Age of Surveillance social reality. Perhaps future studies can
Capitalism. consider critical patent analysis as a
reinforcement to existing methods for
Conclusion studying digital platforms.
This article aimed to present a
methodological approach to the study of References
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Hartford: Trinity College.

pag. 53
 4
C H A P T E R
Predatory Pricing and Multiplication of
Exploitation in Amazon’s Business Strategy
In The Social Network, a 2010 film directed
by David Fincher and written by Aaron
Sorkin – which among its many merits also
has that of clarifying the interlocking
between sexism and capitalism in the
digital age – the difference between the
business model before and
Dotcom Bubble is explained in a single
sequence. Mark Zuckerberg and his friend
and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin
– who will later sue him for being banned
by shareholders – are in New York to try to
close deals with advertising agencies.
Here they meet Sean Parker, founder of
Napster, who drags them between
C H A P T E R
4
Tania Rispoli
Duke University (USA)
electronic music and cocktails in the world
of Californian Ideology of start-ups and
clarifies how for a platform, unlike
traditional businesses, it is not essential to
generate revenue immediately, but to
grow quickly, become “cool”, attract more
after the and more users and only then to start to
monetize – with the difference that in this
case they will earn “billions” instead of
merely millions of dollars.
In a single scene, Fincher and Sorkin
explain what Nick Srnicek in Platform
Capitalism defined as “network-effects”,
i.e., the phenomenon according to which
«the more numerous the users who use a
pag. 54
platform, the more valuable that platform increased by March 2021 Amazon’s profits
becomes for everyone else».[1] by $138.8 billion, re-doubling the net
While Amazon definitive consecration as income of the year before – so that in a
the most used platform for e-commerce situation of an unprecedented crisis, while
came with the transition to Prime and user small business have failed, the big
loyalty (business to consumer commerce), corporation players have won the entire
what allowed the corporation to acquire a market.[1]
monopolistic position in the market of In the context of the pandemic, Amazon’s

book selling has been the aggressive strategy has been to privilege its own retail

pricing policy that destroyed the instead of «third-party sellers», which, at

the beginning of the first wave, have been
publishing market (business to business
discouraged from selling their «non-
commerce). An overview of this genesis is
essential products».[2] This snapshot of
offered by the House Judiciary Committee
Amazon’s rise and consolidation of power
Antitrust Subcommittee Report published
on the market helps us to define
at the end of October 2020. From the
platforms’ activity as a series of
report we learn that «Amazon is estimated
interconnected “operations”, which
to be the second-largest private employer
combine the action of extraction of
in the United States, with over 500,000
resources, with the infrastructure of
employees» and that it is «one of the most
logistics, and the financial supremacy in
valuable companies in the world, and its
the stock market, towards an increasing
CEO Jeff Bezos, is reported to be the
concentration of margin and economic
wealthiest person in the world».[2] prominence.[3]
Interestingly, according to the Antitrust What clearly emerges from the Antitrust
Subcommittee Report, Amazon’s position Committee Report is that whether
within the market will remain Amazon’s strategy is directed to costumers
unchallenged for the «foreseeable future», or to B2B commerce or to Cloud, through
because of three intermingling factors «(1) Amazon Web Services (AWS), its economic
network effects, which make it difficult for behavior results in predation obtained
another marketplace to achieve a through the increasing of its «market
comparable number of buyers and sellers; power», the merging of other business
(2) switching costs associated with activity, and putting into practice a series
consumer shopping outside the Amazon of business practices aimed toward
ecosystem; and (3) the steep costs of monopoly. For instance, in the case of
building a logistics network comparable in AWS, the Report acknowledges that
size and scope to Amazon’s massive Amazon misappropriated data, offering to
international footprint in fulfillment and third parts «proprietary managed services
delivery».[3] based on knock-offs of
Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has
[1] Amazon.com (2021).
[2] Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and
[1] Srnicek (2016), 27.
Administrative Law (2020), 261.
[2] Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and
[3] For a definition of capitalism as a combination of
Administrative Law (2020), 247.
series of operations see Mezzadra & Neilson (2019), 64-
[3] Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and
74.
Administrative Law (2020), 260.

pag. 55
open-source code»;[1] it directly harmed Becoming the Infrastructure
«innovation», pushing for proprietary In his ground-breaking investigative report,
policies; and it used «self-preferencing» in The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the
binding costumers and third-party Age of Amazon, the Silicon Valley
businesses.[2] journalist Brad Stone emphasizes that the
All these strategies are aimed to enhance turning point in Amazon’s strategy
the three intertwined factors that ensure happened after 2004 with the launch of
Amazon’s prominence on the market, that the e-books on the market. In the previous
are: consolidating and monopolizing ten years, from 1994, when it was founded,
costumers and sellers, reinforcing the until the invention of «Fiona» – the alias
“ecosystem”, and compacting on Amazon used for Kindle device – Amazon, while

the entire associated logistics of buying being largely unprofitable because of its

and selling. low prices, slowly became the most

prominent online mall of books and other
Looking at these three factors, in this
goods. After 2004 this strategy was
article, I emphasize that Amazon’s general
intensified following the principles of what
business strategy was established through
Jeff Bezos called the «Gazelle project»,
the litigation with book publishers from
according to which «small publishers»
2004 until 2012, when Bezos’ company
should have been approached «the way a
launched the idea to reduce the price of e-
cheetah would pursue a sickly gazelle».[1]
books to establish itself as the leader of
The idea – having Amazon become the
the entire selling market. Combining
most important marketplace – was to have
specific case with Marx’s understanding of
publishers accommodate to Amazon’s
the process of intensification in the
increased cut on books selling by
extraction of value (between relative and
blackmailing them with the threat of
absolute surplus-value), I argue that
reducing their visibility on the
Amazon has combined the practice of «recommendation system». In this
predatory pricing with the multiplication framework, pursuing smaller or more
of the exploitation of labor-power across “vulnerable” book publishers meant
the entire supply-chain. In influencing the starting from the lowest elements of the
organizational structure of production, publishing food chain. Following the
distribution and consumption, a platform journalist Sarah Gainsforth, we can see this
intensifies its capacity of extracting and mechanism as a combination of
exploiting surplus-value. Finally, I question «predatory pricing» and «vertical
what kind of political action we would integration» of different sectors of business
need in a framework in which platforms aimed at acquiring a monopoly on the
constitute a new model of intermediation market, even with the initial risk of losing
of different segments of economy (and profitability.[2]
politics). The question of predatory pricing is even
more intriguing because of the
[5] Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and changeability and opportunistic behavior
Administrative Law (2020), 327. of all the participants implied, which are
[6] Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and
Administrative Law (2020), 328-329.
[1] Stone (2013), 387
[2] Gainsforth (2020), 46-47.

pag. 56
all subjected to the “irony” of a of production, distribution, and circulation.
monopolistic conduct.[1] [1]
An example of this mechanism can be
found in the series of lawsuits around the Intensifying Exploitation
«Big Five publishers»: the same Penguin, If we consider the fundamental role that
Hachette, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster platforms like Amazon had in the
that together with Apple Inc. in 2012 were fluidification of the process of value
charged with the “conspiracy” of raising realization in the sphere of exchange of
prices together against Amazon, have the market – through its innovative
been just recently (February 2021) charged management determined by the three
with “fixing” the prices together with factors combined with the extraction of
Amazon.[2] data –, we still have to specify how this
Also, according to Stone, this aggressive process occurs throughout a supply-chain
strategy was not peculiar to Amazon only, in which Amazon is only the last link.
since «The company had finally learned Amazon manages through an aggressive
the tricks of the century-old trade that is policy of price management to force all
modern retail. Profit margin is finite. Better the companies along the supply-chain to
financial terms with suppliers translate restructure their organization, cutting
directly into a healthier bottom line – and costs and increasing their own rate of
create the foundation on which everyday exploitation on labor. In Marxist terms, it is
low prices become possible».[3] Before not market exchange per se that can
Amazon, already Walmart experimented a create an increase of productivity but only
strategy that linked together the investment strategies and organizational
restructuring of the supply-chain through structures. As it has been claimed by
distribution centers – which was at the Wiliam Lazonick «costs, however, are not
basis of the logistics revolution –, the simply imposed on the business enterprise
pressure on suppliers through lowering the by exogenous technology and factor
prices and costumers’ binding.[4] markets, as neoclassical economics
While, as highlighted among others by Van textbooks tell us. Rather, these costs are
Dijck, «building an infrastructural core» is the result of the innovative strategy of the
the factor that allowed the «Big Fives» business enterprise».[2]
(Meta, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and That means that a policy imposed by
Google Alphabet) to construct their Amazon of cutting the costs of the
ecosystems and to guarantee their production process in the company of the
prominence within the market, lowering supply-chain will inevitably results in a
the prices, not only favored the network different form of investment. That is
effects, but also the enhancement of because modern enterprises are in fact at
exploitation of workers – at various stages the center of a network of enterprises (the
enterprises of enterprises).
[1] Rub (2018). On the one hand, they are part of a classic
[2] US v Apple, inc., et al (2012); US v Amazon.com, et
hierarchical chain of subcontractors,
al (2021). For the definition of Big Five publishers, see
Cain (2021).
[3] Stone (2013), 390-391. [1] Van Dijck et al. (2018), 23-27; Alimahomed-Wilson,
[4] See Cusumano, Gawer & Yoffie (2019); Duhigg Allison & Reese (2020), 1-11.
(2019). [2] Lazonick (2016).

pag. 57
on the other hand they are part of an to reproduce the labor-power. Innovation
“ecosystem” – the definition is by Eamonn and pressure on salaries go hand in hand
Kelly of Deloitte – where the decisions of with this process because it is in the
the enterprises at the center of the system interest of a capitalist that needs to offer
create consequences, like tectonic shifts, increasingly cheaper products to the
for all the others. More innovative platform to decrease the value of the
companies, like Amazon, will drive the labor-power in order to increase the
restructuring of other companies of the amount of surplus-value while the length
supply-chain, which, if they want to remain of the working day (or the size of the
at their scale of growth, have to cut costs working population) remains the same.
and increase investment in order to For Amazon’s perspective, offering cheaper
increase their rate of exploitation. products means, on a systemic level, that
Marx showed that in these cases the rate the cost of the labor-power decreases not
of exploitation can be increased only in only because the amount of living labor
two ways, either by increasing the working contained in a commodity has decreased,
day, as in the model of the absolute but also because the purchase-power of
surplus-value, or by a more efficient use of salaries will have decreased, given that
labor-time.[1] Given the already great with the same monetary cost of the labor-
pressure on salaries – which have been power it would be possible to buy a larger
increasingly pushed to the bottom in real basket of commodities.
terms in the last decades – it is only the In fact, even an increased purchase-power
latter that can be viable in a situation of salaries can coexist with an increase of
where the supply-chain is driven by the rate of exploitation. In these terms, the
platform companies. When the working problem of the predatory pricing is not
day remains the same (or theoretically only an interesting topic for anti-trust
even decreases given the contemporary policies with all their “ironic” mechanisms
increase of reserve army of labor), it is only but also for workers struggles and
the increase of relative surplus-value that rehearsals of unionization.
can compensate the pressure from
platforms like Amazon to cut costs even Perspectives of Struggles
further in order to feed the drive to acquire In the US the Antitrust Judiciary
data of the platform. But how is it possible Committee launched some actions against
for the extraction of surplus-value to «Amazon’s anticompetitive conduct» that,
increase if the working day remains the lowering the prices of e-books,
same? superimposes “overcharges” for the
According to the Marxian argument of the retailers, thus violating the Sherman Act;
relative surplus-value, if the value of the also the European Committee has started,
means of subsistence required to as early as 2019, investigations into
reproduce the labor-power decreases, it Amazon’s retails strategy and has
means that a larger portion of the working examined their use of data and abuse «of
day will have been used to produce a dominant position».[1]
surplus-value and less will have been used
[1] US v Amazon (2021), 55-61; Antitrust Commission
[1] Marx (1990), 643-654. opens investigations into possible anti-competitive
conduct of Amazon (2019).

pag. 58
In Europe, at the end of March 2022, «the In March 2021, the workers of Amazon’s
world’s most far-reaching laws to address warehouse in Alabama – who are
the power of the biggest tech predominantly people of color – had
companies»[1] was propositioned, relentlessly pushed toward the
completing the initiative started with the unionization, despite the company’s well
General Data Protection Regulation known anti-union practices and
approved in 2018. Whereas the already campaigns.[1] Even though this campaign
approved (at the end of April 2022), Digital failed, in other facilities, such as in the
Services Act supervises the management Amazon fulfillment center in Staten Island,
of online content in multiple ways, the the struggle against the corporation
Digital Market Act (to be approved, sparkled. Here, in April 2022, the
supposedly, in March 2023) aims at independent Amazon Labor Union won,
regulating the competition for the so- with an unprecedented victory, the
called gatekeeper companies. By contrast, majority of votes in favor of the
in the US, not only any legislative action unionization.[2] The famous union-busting
was undertaken, yet, but in some state practices that qualifies Amazon as «fiercely
lawsuits, such as the one in the District of anti-union»[3] have been temporarily
Columbia, that alleged Amazon for its anti- defeated in this autonomous experiment,
competitive strategies towards the third fueled over time (in particular before,
party-sellers, giants, such as Amazon, even during, and after the pandemic) by
won the dismissal.[2] Even though the walkouts and blockades aimed to
Senate Judiciary Committee of the US with denounce inequitable and unsafe working
bipartisan support across all institutions is conditions, as well as unjustified firings
trying to fill the gap with Europe, by and labor precarization.[4] All these
discussing the two anti-trust bills – The attempts pushed towards an increase of
American Innovation and the Choice labor organizing and «circulation
Online and The Open Markets Act –, it struggles», to borrow Joshua Clover’s
seems that limiting by legislation the effective phrasing – meaning the
power of the big tech is a painful and interruption of the process of distribution
arduous process. and circulation across various segments of
More generally, while legislative actions the supply-chain. These two combined
might limit (at least in theory) the power of strategies of struggles, on the one side, the
Amazon and other digital gatekeepers blockade of the labor process and, on the
from above, through the implementation other, the long-term grassroots
and transformation of regulatory policies, unionization within a working unit seem to
the question of challenging the potentially constitute a counteraction to
interconnectedness and pervasiveness of the power of Amazon’s multiplication of
platform networks still remains an open exploitation.
question for workers and social subjects
challenging capital extractive practices [1] Sainato (2021).
[2] McAlevey (2022).
from below, as bearers of living labor.
[3] Leon (2022).
[4] An account of these struggles can be found in
[1] Satariano (2022). Alimahomed-Wilson & Reese (2020), 275-281.
[2] Kinnon (2022).

pag. 59
Still, a question remains: how to interlock
different workers (through struggles and
unions) across a supply-chain, which is
often transnational and mixes different
segments of production, distribution, and
circulation – within Amazon, and beyond
it.
pag. 60
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 5

C H A P T E R
C H A P T E R

5
Platforms as assets and as a battleground
Andrea Fagioli

Saturday, 14 December 2019. In the different food delivery apps operating in

Recoleta cemetery area, a tourist
destination and meeting place for many
riders, it is a sultry late afternoon. Mario
comes from the west of the huge Gran
Buenos Aires, has travelled an hour by
train, cycled a couple of kilometers and is
Buenos Aires: Glovo, PedidosYa and Rappi.
Today he works for the latter, because it is
not necessary to book a shift[1].
According to Mario, to do this job you have
to know the platform, understand it. 'When
you call technical support,' he says, 'they

waiting for the first delivery of an evening take a long time to answer and are often

that, for date and climate, promises to be
tough but good.
After losing his job in a logistics company,
he accumulated a lot of experience in the
field of platforms. He has been an Uber
driver - 'but it doesn't pay off if the car isn't
yours' - and has active accounts in three
not helpful. They put people on the phone
who have never done this work and when
you explain to them what the problem is,
[1] A few months later, Rappi implemented the
closed zone system, which ties the possibility of
logging in certain zones and at certain times to the
ranking.

pag. 62
they don't understand' (pers. comm.
December 2019).
Natalia is Venezuelan, 21 years old, has
been living in Argentina for two years and
is studying Medicine at the University of
Buenos Aires. She has done many jobs to
support herself -baby sitter, call centre,
etc.-, but among them, the rider is the one
that pays the best and, above all, the one
that best fits in with classes at the faculty,
especially Rappi, which allows her to
connect anytime and from anywhere. She
is waiting for her mobile phone to
announce the next delivery, in front of the
large shopping centre opposite the
cemetery. "Technical support never solves
any problems," she says with conviction, "I
only call them if the customer cancels the
order and they give me a debt they
shouldn't or when a wrong mileage
appears" (pers. comm. December 2019).
The two riders agree that there are cases
where the problem cannot be solved
without involving the platform, especially
when it has to do with the payment,
refund and cancellation policy.
However, if the problem concerns the use
of the app or obstacles that arise in the
daily hand-to-hand with the operating
system, riders resort to small tricks they
know from experience and avoid
communicating with technical support.
"We have WhatsApp groups or call a few
friends. "Look this happened to me or that
happened to me". Above all, the new ones
write to a mate or, at the limit, ask some
rider they pass on the street' (Mario, pers.
comm. December 2019).
My aim here is not to dwell on riders'
discontent with the support they receive
from platforms in carrying out their tasks;
just as I do not intend to analyse the
tension between two different categories
pag. 63
of platform workers, call centre workers
and riders. What interests me is to reflect
on the great autonomy that riders have in
organising the service that platforms offer
and without which they could not offer it.
An autonomy that increased even more
during the 'social, preventive and
compulsory isolation' - in force in
Argentina from March to November 2020 -
when riders had to manage two fronts: on
the one hand, they had to work to avoid
having problems with the protocol
suggested by the platforms and, on the
other hand, to avoid having problems with
customers who sometimes rejected that
protocol (Elbert & Negri, 2021).
The organisation of labour is a central issue
in the framework of reflections on platform
capitalism, in particular on the platforms
that Nick Srnicek calls lean; those that
appear to be 'asset-less companies', insofar
as they do not own - in the case that
interests me - bicycles, motorbikes or
mobile phones, but 'do own the most
important asset: the platform of software
and data analytics' (Srnicek, 2017: 76).
In the debate on digital labour, riders can
be placed, regardless of their relationship
with platforms, in the framework of what
has been called on-demand digital labour
(Heeks, 2017; Casilli, 2019), characterised by
the co-presence and articulation of an
online and an offline dimension.
Both the former, managed through an
algorithm that assigns orders to the riders
according to logics that are not at all
transparent and in perpetual change, and
the extremely material level of the bodies
moving through the city streets, entrusted
in large part to the great ability of the
riders to adapt to different situations, offer
important things to consider. This double
dimension must be taken into account
because it runs through the entire text. workers can constitute a key element in
Firstly, it must be taken into account that the subversion of power relations within
lean platforms, such as those of food platforms.
delivery, could not exist without the
separation and articulation of intellectual Theoretical Framework
and physical means of production (see The theoretical perspective from which I
Nicoli & Paltrinieri, 2019). Put another way, intend to tackle these problems is what,
on the one hand, platforms depend on broadly speaking, we can call 'post-
physical means of production, owned and autonomist Marxism' (or 'post-workerism',
maintained by workers - without which or 'post-operaism'), because of the
the service could not be offered. On the attention that certain authors belonging to
other hand, it seems excessive to say that that tradition devoted to the technological
lean platforms do not possess much dimension of capitalism, which they
beyond their reputation (Hayns, 2016). On analysed from a political point of view
the contrary, it can be assumed that, if in since the 1960s, from the first issue of the
Marx (1976) fixed capital consisted of journal Quaderni Rossi (Red Notebooks)
machines, in platform capitalism software (see, for instance, Panzieri, 1980).
and algorithms can be thought of in terms As Steve Wright (2002: 41) pointed out, in
of intangible fixed capital (Terranova, 2014; the 1960s the dominant view among
Vercellone, 2020). Italian Marxists was that "technological
Secondly, it can be argued that these progress somehow stood apart from class
platforms could not function without relation" and workerism can be thought of
putting certain generic capacities of riders as the very first attempt to demystify
to work, capacities that they possess as technological rationality. The way of
potential beings, endowed with language thinking technological innovation from the
and able to cope with a routine studded subjective class point of view, instead of
with contingencies of a different nature. from the objective point of view of capital,
And it is on this capacity that the service marks what Matteo Pasquinelli (2014a: 181)
offered by food delivery platforms called "the passage from an organic
depends. composition to an organic antagonism". In
In the following pages, I will first discuss this sense, from the operaist perspective,
the theoretical framework within which the will to dominate the rebellious hand of
my work is situated; then - as if to labour plays a key role in technological
analytically isolate a technical dimension innovation.
and a political dimension of on-demand It was mainly through reading the
digital labour - I will develop some 'Fragment on machines' from Marx's
reflections on the way in which Grundrisse that workerists questioned, in
algorithmic management feeds on what in the 1960s, 'the supposed neutrality of
Marxian terms can be called the general science and of knowledge in general'
intellect; in the last part I will address the (Virno, 1996: 266). That same text became
question of the political management of fundamental, in the 1980s and 1990s - for
the workforce in food delivery platforms the now 'post-workerists' - for thinking
and how the knowledge required of about post-Fordism and the knowledge

pag. 64
society; today, the 'Fragment on machines' In the words of Paolo Virno (1996: 270), in
is still useful for "thinking about the level of the framework of post-Fordist production
abstraction of the financial, securitarian, 'the nexus between knowledge and
logistical and digital cosmopolis" production, in effect, is not exhausted in
(Pasquinelli, 2014b: 8) and, we might add, the system of machines; rather, it is
platform capitalism. necessarily articulated through concrete
In those posthumously published subjects [...] Within the processes of
notebooks, Marx (1973) was able to 'foresee' contemporary labour, there are entire
that, in the future, abstract knowledge constellations of concepts which function
would become the main productive force, all by themselves as productive
a force that would relegate parceled and "machines," without any need for a
repetitive labour to a marginal position, mechanical body or for a small electronic
marking the "destruction of the law of soul'. It is therefore not knowledge that
value" (Negri, 1989: 146). crystallizes into machines, but
While emphasizing the German constellations of concepts that begin to
philosopher's extraordinary capacity for function as machines.
anticipation, workerists filter Marx in the Two issues should be emphasised here
light of the history of capitalism. that help these reflections land in platform
Let us see in more detail. With the concept capitalism. The first is that that social
of general intellect, Marx alludes not only knowledge which, with a particularly
to scientific knowledge, but also to eloquent formula, Virno (1996, 2004) calls
workers' knowledge expropriated from the mass intellectuality is not only put to work
workers and crystallized in the steel of in the advanced tertiary sector. On the
machines. In the pages of the Gründrisse contrary, whereas in the intentions of Ford-
we read that 'the specific mode of working taylorism living labour was to be stripped
here appears directly as becoming of all knowledge, in contemporary
transferred from the worker to capital in capitalism labour power is required to fully
the form of the machine, and his own live up to its definition: 'the aggregate of
labour capacity devalued thereby [...] What those mental and physical capabilities
was the living worker's activity becomes existing in the physical form, the living
the activity of the machine (Marx, 1973: personality, of a human being, capabilities
704). which he sets in motion whenever he
The reading of post-workerism authors produces a use-value of any kind' (Marx,
emphasises that in contemporary 1976: 270).
capitalism there seems to be a reverse The second issue to take into account is
movement and, as Carlo Vercellone (2007: that it is not only workers' intellectual and
29) indicates, "The principal 'fixed capital' linguistic capacities that are put to work -
becomes 'man himself'". And this is not as cognitive capitalism theorists
because the ownership of work tools is sometimes seem to suggest - and that
increasingly in the hands of workers - a labour is anything but disembodied. On
trend not only affecting riders and which the contrary, as the riders themselves
the Covid-19 pandemic has taken to the demonstrate, "cognitive and affective
extreme - but because of the capacities it labour is not isolated to specific organs but
incorporates.
pag. 65
engages the entire body and mind
together" (Hardt & Negri, 2009: 132).
Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri (2000:
357) have repeatedly emphasised that
labour is "productive activity of a general
intellect and a general body". From this
point of view, even when the product is
immaterial - such as the data that
platforms also collect thanks to workers
like riders and put to value (see also Fagioli
2021) - "the act of producing remains both
corporeal and intellectual" (Hardt & Negri,
2009: 132).
The second aspect that it is important to
reread in the light of the history of
capitalism is that of the contradiction
between a production process based on
science and a unit of measurement of
wealth based on the amount of labour
incorporated in products, which makes
Marx (1973: 700) say: "Capital thus works
towards its own dissolution as the form
dominating production". A century and a
half after those pages were written, we can
affirm, again using Virno's words (1996:
267), that 'the full factual realization of the
tendencies described in the Grundrisse,
without, however, any emancipatory-or
even merely conflictual-reversal' and that
new and stable forms of domination have
come into being.
In any case, the reappropriation of fixed
capital by living labour opens up horizons
where new conflicts can and are in fact
arising. On the terrain of platforms, forms
of conflict are emerging between capital
and labour in which the latter can direct
against capital the knowledge it is
required to put into work.
Algorithmic Management: putting the
general intellect to work
Returning to the case that interests me, it
pag. 66
should be noted that one of the main
terrains of capital-labour conflict in food
delivery platforms is that of the opacity of
algorithms. In fact, as has been effectively
pointed out in the framework of militant
research, which focused on the case of
Foodora, "The provisions paid for the order
form a substantial part of the couriers'
income at Foodora, and because of this,
those who get more orders earn more. The
courier however does not know how and
why the algorithm distributes the orders to
one courier instead of another. Apparently,
the algorithm distributes orders to couriers
it deems 'effective''' (Tammisto, 2018).
Crossing the Atlantic Ocean and the
Equator, things are not too different; on
the contrary, the dependence on orders is
even greater, insofar as none of the
platforms pays riders a fixed amount and
the remuneration depends exclusively on
the deliveries made, the rate of which
varies according to logics that escape the
workers and over which they have no
possibility of intervening.
As Julieta Haidar (2020: 35) pointed out in
a research based on riders in Buenos Aires
during the pandemic, but extensible to
many other realities and 'normal' times,
"the large volume of information extracted
by monitoring riders regarding the
number of deliveries accepted and made,
the hours and areas in which they work,
the ratings of customers and shops, is used
by platforms to evaluate them and place
them in rankings that translate into a
complex system of rewards and penalties
designed to generate productivity-
enhancing conduct".
In the debate, the formula algorithmic (or
automated) management is used to
indicate "the software architectures
employed by the platforms allow for the
organisation of the labour process (Rossi, 2019: 1428). It is not, as one might
increasingly with little or no direct prima facie think, a question of valorising
oversight of human managers" (Niebler, a specific skill or prior knowledge, such as
Altenried & Macannuco, 2020: 257). A knowing how to move in the city where
group of researchers identified "four one grew up.
features of the app, which correspond to Andrés and Andrés, a Venezuelan father
four different ways of controlling and son working together in the Palermo
autonomy in this type of management neighborhood, for Glovo and PedidosYa
regime" (Ivanova, Bronowicka, Kocher & respectively, seem to confirm this

Degner, 2018: 12). hypothesis. "With GPS, you don't lose a

Although this research is carried out in
Europe, with Foodora and Deliveroo, the
ways indicated by the researchers to
control work and conduct
through automated notification; control
through monetary incentives;
through internal competition for shifts;
and control through information
asymmetry - can also be applied to local
platforms.
If food delivery apps aim at conducting
riders' pipelines or, put another way, at
managing the flow of workforce according
to their needs, the condition of possibility
of algorithmic management is the putting
of specifically human capabilities to work.
Algorithmic management can externalise
a number of tasks and decisions, only
because what we have called
intellectuality includes a certain familiarity
with different communication systems, an
understanding of artificial languages, but
also "local knowledges, informal 'linguistic
play,' as well as certain
preoccupations" (Virno, 1996: 270).
Let us look at this in more detail. As has
been stated from a Turin-based research,
"technology-intensive capitalism extracts
value from the collective intelligence [...]
blind person or a deaf person," claims
Andrés father. 'If I went to Berlin tomorrow
and the day after tomorrow to Shanghai,
beyond the language problems, I could
- control
work there immediately too,' adds the son
(pers. comm. October 2019).
control
What seems to be decisive is the ability to
adapt to situations, to know how to build,
fit in and move within a network of human
relations, which is fundamental for solving
problems.
"When you do this job for a while you know
the App, you know what the problems can
be and you prevent them," says Mario, "for
example, if you don't get to the shop on
time the platform sends you a message
and 'frees' you, so I don't wait to arrive to
let you know I've arrived, 7/800 metres
before I already let you know, so I avoid the
mass risk. Another example he gives - and which
partially contradicts what Andrés claims,
about the little influence of city
knowledge[1] - is that of weighting the
acceptance of deliveries. 'Here,' he shows
ethical the screen on his mobile phone, 'the
platform tells me where I have to go to
pick up the order. When you have
experience in the area you know the
distances and times. If you accept the
order from Freddo [ice cream parlor chain]

but also through the continuous

[1] I say partially, because it has more to do with a
valorisation of human labour in both its
knowledge that is generated in hand-to-hand
physical and affective engagements with combat with the platform than from a real
the social environment of the metropolis" knowledge of the city, such as a native may have.

pag. 67
on Ayacucho Street you
immediately, if you accept the order from
Freddo Obelisco [another outlet], even if
the App says 5 minutes, you know you
won't arrive, they release your order and
block you an hour. If you know how it
works, you don't accept, even at the
expense of the acceptance rate
therefore the ranking, but you avoid the
problem' (pers. comm. December 2019).
These tricks, which allow Mario and the
other riders to survive the problems of the
computer system, as well as those of
another nature that constantly emerge,
allow him to continue working, but at the
same time make it possible for
platforms to function and meet
delivery times they promise
advertisements.
On the other hand, it is important to
emphasise the centrality of the emotional
element, which enters fully into
concept of general intellect. Although for
riders in Buenos Aires it cannot be stated
sic et simpliciter that "If a restaurant
manager decides they don't like you, they
can flag your account" (Barker, 2020: 53),
nor that "online reputations laboriously
built up over months or years" can be
"destroyed in a flash by one spiteful
customer's unchallengeable low
rating" (Huws, 2016), neither can one deny
the vulnerability of riders in this respect.
In the case of Uber, Alex Rosenblat and
Luke Stark (2016: 3775) pointed out that
drivers are required to 'suppress or contain
their emerging emotions to present a
placating or welcoming demeanor
customers, regardless of that customer's
reciprocal emotional state [...] in exchange
for ratings instead of tips'. Albeit at a
different level, especially by virtue of the
arrive shorter duration of interactions, there are
many situations in which riders have to put
on a good face to avoid a bad rating or be
particularly polite to get a good one. In
many cases, riders are called upon to
explain a problem with the app or, more
simply, to appease the anger of dissatisfied
and customers. 'You are thieves, I will never buy
anything from you again'. writes a
customer[1] in a chat to Ezequiel, who is
guilty of warning her that the supermarket
on Avenida del Libertador where she
placed an order, which she has already
paid for, is now closed. No matter that
Brian, to avoid a negative evaluation, tries
to be as helpful and well-disposed towards
the
her as possible and sends photographic
the
evidence of the closure of the
in the
supermarket.
The customer's fury, which completely
identifies worker and platform, is due to
Ezequiel's refusal to look for alternatives;
the alternatives that would involve extra work
that, ça va sans dire, would be unpaid. In
cases such as this, which go completely
beyond the algorithm, riders are called
upon to take over functions that would be
the responsibility of the customer service,
resorting to argumentative strategies or
appealing to the emotional and human
side.
star
Beyond the political management of
living labour
Up to this point, the logic of algorithmic
management seems to be directed
exclusively at efficiency. One aspect that
remains somewhat in the shadows is the
to dimension of the - let's call it - 'political'
management of living labour by platforms.
This is an aspect that emerges, in an
[1] The screenshot of the chat was posted by the
person concerned in the Whatsapp group of riders.
pag. 68
obvious way, in the unilateral suspension did not arrive in the appropriate manner',
of the accounts of riders who have but you don't really know what they refer
participated in strikes or other to," says Carlos (pers. comm. December
demonstrations, and which requires the 2020). "It's obvious that something strange
intervention of some grey official of the is going on,' echoes Camila, with whom he
Apps, called upon to manually enter into alternates childcare and riding hours,
the system the ID number of the rider to 'maybe they put too many people in
be blocked. during the pandemic and now they want

But the 'political' dimension is not only to reduce the number of workers. We

manifested by human intervention; it wouldn't have been riders ourselves if we

hadn't lost our jobs' (pers. comm.
seems that even in the logic of the
December 2020).
algorithms' functioning, the neutralization
But while platforms, through their
of labour-force is central. Juan Manuel
algorithms, make a kind of class struggle
Ottaviano, lawyer and councilor of APP -
from above, at the same time they
Asociación de personal de plataformas[1],
constitute a space in which forms of
argues that the algorithm voluntarily favors
labour insubordination can be generated.
turnover: 'Obviously there are labour
Indeed, among the ways in which
trajectories within the platforms,' he says,
platforms harness the relational capacity
'but this is due to a kind of worker
that characterises that potential, non-
knowledge that tries to oppose the
specialised being that is the human being,
platform ideal, that ideal that refers to the
is to exploit the communication and
work, therefore to a part-time performance
enormous flow of information circulating
or during a determined period of time'.
in the numerous Facebook groups and
According to Ottaviano, whose opinion is equally numerous WhatsApp chats of
based on the experience of 'militant' work, riders. Riders solve problems ranging from
not having access to any company data, how to legalise a foreign licence to where
'the algorithm is designed so that there is to find an open mechanic, from what to do
dispersion over the territory and workers if an order that was paid for by credit card
do not accumulate in certain places, but it is cancelled to how to get an account that
is also designed for a rotation of crashes to work. These groups also
personnel'. In this sense, 'when a new function as a support network for
generation of riders enters the platform, accidents and safety that in an employer-
the algorithm tends to assign them more employee relationship would be the
deliveries, more work and therefore more responsibility of the company. In many
economic revenue. Especially in Rappi, it is cases, the groups seem to be an additional
very clear that workers make a cycle' (pers. training, when not a substitute, to what
comm. December 2020). the platform should provide.
This hypothesis is confirmed today in the In this sense, it should be taken into
anxieties of the many rappitenderos who account that each rider is a platform
have been suspended - in their opinion - multiple-user, not only in the sense that

arbitrarily in recent months. "After the

[1] It is the first union in Argentina that has the
suspension you get a screen that says
ambition of bringing workers together not by sector,
'service inconveniences' or 'the products but by the fact of working via platform.

pag. 69
many of the riders in Buenos Aires work such as telepresence platforms, allowed
with more than one food delivery app at workers from various countries to meet
the same time (Haidar, 2020), but also that virtually and even organise a three-day
they use different platforms in a international assembly (16-18 August 2020)
coordinated manner to complete with translation into various languages,
deliveries. They use geolocation programs which was attended by platform workers
such as Waze or Google Maps to get from over 10 countries. Some riders
around in a huge city like this, payment intervened from the road, between
platforms to circumvent debt limits and deliveries, while drivers while waiting for a
thus be able to continue working during passenger in the car.
the hours when the agencies of non-bank If from the point of view of living labour, it
payment channels are closed, and also can be said that the problem is not the
platforms to protect themselves against platforms, but the social relations
the risks of the job. underlying them, it is also possible to go
Deep knowledge of the mechanisms of further and say that they constitute a
platforms and knowing how to move in terrain of struggle where those relations
the bowels of apps is not only vital for can be subverted.
riders to be able to do this work and, in
parallel, for food delivery platforms to exist,
but it has also allowed for extremely
creative forms of struggle. In 2018 in
Buenos Aires there was the first strike of
riders in Latin America; 'the idea of the
strike was to be in one of the places where
there was the most orders,' recalls Jorge,
'when an order arrived we would accept it
but just before 30 minutes passed, the
maximum time available, before the
platform blocked us, we would release it
and another comrade would take it and
do the same. Customers would call
because deliveries were not arriving and
through the GPS they would see that all
the red dots of riders were in the same
place' (pers. comm. December 2019).
Although a phenomenon in the manner of
the 2018 strike has not been repeated,
there have also been international strikes
in recent months. Again, the ability to
know how to navigate the platforms and
the fabric of human relations created was
key to the organisation of the
mobilisations. The use of other platforms,

pag. 70
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C H A P T E R
C H A P T E R

6
Platform communism.
A manifesto for struggling within and against
platform capitalism
Into the Black Box

In case you hadn't noticed, we are now in how: the productive fabric of
the platform age. The initial explosive contemporary capitalism has found its
impact of platforms has now embedded infrastructure in the development of
itself within the social and economic digital technologies and platforms. The
relations of our societies. From Asia to point, then, is to politically manage this
Latin America, from Africa to Europe, it is transformation.
no longer possible to imagine a day The prophets of business as usual
passing without using some app to access enthusiastically repeat the same mantra:
a service, checking the web to catch up on let the market do its thing and the money
the news, posting content on social will trickle down to everyone… sooner or
networks or working in the cloud. later. Whereas policy makers try to take
We live in an augmented reality that will cover from the fantastic beasts that the
soon be swallowed up by the Metaverse, Leviathan has allowed to grow up beside
while workers are constantly having their it, threatening its supremacy.
lives expropriated in the form of data. It is Then there is the vast and fragmented
no longer a question of if and when, but family of those who would once have been

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called “leftists” – revolutionaries, reformists, bombs with drones, but we are unable to
red, black, green and any other colours you guarantee health and education to most
can think of. Perhaps today some of them of the world’s population. It seems there is
would prefer to be called accelerationists no alternative to platform capitalism: at
because they believe that pushing most we can carve out our own niche for
technological transformations to their survival or delude ourselves that one day
extremes would result in the economic we will tame the Beast.
and social overcoming of capitalist If we think of the real as something
relations. Others instead suggest a compact and homogenous, then realism is
“Socialism 4.0”, calling for the a conservative political ontology. We prefer
nationalization of the means of to think of the mole exploring
production, or rather, of the platforms. Of underground, digging its tunnels in the
course we shouldn’t forget the neo- earth until the building above collapses.
luddites, who want to wave goodbye to You’d probably like us to tell you a little
the metropolis and its digital machines to more about platform capitalism.
return to the enchanted and primitive We will now summarise in 11 points what
world of the countryside. We hope we we see as the characteristics – and
haven’t forgotten anyone… We should contradictions – of the new era.
mention that spectre Marx talked about,
which frequented the pubs but was wary ***
of offering recipes for the future. Does it
make sense to speak of communism Genealogy
today? Could there be a platform Digital platforms reflect the broad and
communism? You won’t find the answer in general transformation of the structures of
this manifesto, only a suggestion. production which began at least half a
We will try to summarise that real century ago and can be divided into five
movement in point form, attempting to steps. The first began in the 1960s, when
describe that ongoing transformation that the “logistics revolution” expanded
we call platform capitalism – its system of production on a global scale and the
machines and living labour, its circulation time of goods became part of
accumulation of data and of digital and production itself. The second took place in
material value – and see if we can the 1980s, when consumption began to
understand how to use its contradictions dictate and directly condition the rhythms
as a lever for abolishing the present state of production: the so-called “retail
of things. We are immersed in revolution” in which Walmart was the
contradictions: we talk about wages but paradigmatic actor. The third step
are at work 24/7; there would be no social happened at the turn of the millennium
media if we weren’t continuously with the advent of the dot-com economy,
cooperating on digital platforms, but very in which the World Wide Web became the
few people benefit from the wealth that terrain not only of expanding social
this produces; we can monitor any activity relations but also of new forms of
in any part of the world at any time, use enterprise. The fourth coincided with the
software to spy on anyone we like or drop 2007/2008 economic crash: dozens of

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platforms were set up (from Airbnb in
2007 to Uber in 2008) and the capitalist
productive model moulded itself around
their development. The fifth step arrived
with the Covid-19 pandemic. The need for
social distancing and smart-working
combined to reshape the concepts of
mobility, sociality and work, accelerating
the substantial platformisation of society.
In short, the centrality of digital platforms
now seems to be uncontestable. On the
one hand, they are the forms of enterprise
best adapted to the new relations of
production in which everyone is at the
same time a worker and a consumer
within diffuse and fragmented spaces. On
the other hand, the new structures of
production give them a political and
economic power that benefits them in the
race to tomorrow’s world, a physical-digital
hybrid incarnated in Mark Zuckerberg’s
Metaverse project.
Power
Power is today also embodied in digital
platforms. Part of this power comes from
the fact that the general
platformisation of society, its self-definition
on and through digital platforms, ends up
favouring the increasing overlap between
digital infrastructures, processes of
accumulation and social cooperation.
These platforms determine political
choices, condition public opinion, and
sometimes increase the emergence of
anomalies such as the “Arab spring”, or,
more recently, the protests in Chile or
Hong Kong. They have a logistical power
that allows them to extract and manage
data flows, thus determining regimes of
mobility and forms of inclusion and
exclusion. A tangle of non-state actors has
grown up alongside the Leviathan. They
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interwine, overlap and collide, shaping
new geographies of power. So the
platforms are not themselves the new
Leviathan, but they are a powerful part of
the structure of the new technology stacks
within which contemporary governance is
embedded, and which also contain state
sovereignty. The rules laid down by the
algorithm sit alongside the laws fixed by
codes.
Infrastructure
Marx wrote that capital is a social relation
between people mediated by things. We
would add that, in today’s generalised
regime of “things”, infrastructures take on a
particularly important role: they are the
skeleton that holds up the multiplicity of
social interactions, it is along them that
the flows of goods, capital and services
run. In platform capitalism a decisive part
is played by the digital infrastuctures that
are owned and governed by Big Tech.
Companies like Google, Amazon and
Tencent (the operator of China’s WeChat)
make up the social-but-not-public fixed
capital of a society which sees the merging
of the material and the virtual in one
“reality”.
Since the economic crisis of 2007/2008, all
kinds of platforms have 'infrastructured'
the digital space, appropriating social
cooperation and expropriating the
libertarian imaginary that had seen in the
web a land without masters. Like material
infrastructures, the platforms establish a
certain mobility regime, connecting but at
the same time also restricting and
compelling movement. It is difficult to
travel in Europe today without booking an
Airbnb, to have access to a “community” of
users as large as that of WeChat in China,
or to have as wide a choice of restaurants
in Latin America as that offered by the app tendency of modern geographical scales
Rappi. These businesses own nothing – not to collapse. By their very nature, they cross
a house, a restaurant, or any content – national scales, reproducing themselves
apart from a digital and material trans-locally, creating urban local hybrids,
infrastructure that they make available to and opening up new spaces of
their users. accumulation aiming at new projects of
Although the previous “alternative” colonisation – from the interplanetary
channels are not going anywhere, the space of the universe to the digital space
current hegemony of the new of the Multiverse. The telluric motion with
platforms/infrastructures has become which platformisation has crossed,
clear.This dominant position means decomposed and recomposed spatiality
platforms inevitably gain political power of means it is no longer possible to
a governmental kind: they control, understand social, political and economic
anticipate and determine our behaviour. phenomena by starting from predefined
While the state bases its notion of scales. Unlike other “technological”
sovereignty on the occupation of a innovations in the history of capitalism
determinate territory, the platforms (such as the scientific organization of
construct their power through governing labour) or the long and laborious
the cloud. Thanks to their capacity to construction of infrastructure such as
“extract” data, they have the power to railways and motorways, the “platform
bargain (if not to compete) with the state form” has developed circulation almost
itself, a power that is perhaps greater than simultaneously across the globe. Platforms
ever before seen in capitalism’s long weave together plural historical times,
history. At the same time, as infrastructure, recording the past to anticipate the future,
they are a contested battleground within and allow for the overcoming of the
which new and unprecedented forms of dichotomy between the virtual and the
struggle could arise. real. In other words, they generate space-
times that not only continuously lead back
SpaceTime to different types of infrastructure
Platforms are not simply technological (transoceanic internet cables, data centres,
tools, but a constantly evolving result of click farms, cloud computers, etc.) and
social relations. They act on a planetary concrete assemblages of labour power
scale, feeding themselves on the (crowdworkers, prosumers, drivers, riders,
heterogeneity of the different programmers, etc.), but which should be
metropolitan contexts, continuously being fundamentally understood as existing in
shaped with and by them. They are the interweaving of digitalization and
ecosystems engaged in the consumption material processes.
of human and environmental resources
that determine multiple spatial-temporal Metropolis 4.0
regimes. They have a reductio ad unum The process of platformisation is an urban
ability based on who has ownership over process that, within a more general
algorithms, data and other means of collapse of geographical scales, acts
production. Platforms represent the simultaneously on a global and local scale.

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This should be seen as involving two Geopolitics
processes be read on two levels. There is too often a tendency to separate
The first refers to the mutations caused by digital entities from territorial entities,
the digital platforms on the urban, which platforms from the state, the space of
has multiple effects: firstly, urban flows from the space of places, the
agglomerations are the ideal terrain from network from institutions. But the internet
which platforms can extract value – in and the socio-economic actors that
them they find vast pools of available inhabit it are not neutral, and neither do
labour, data mines and considerable they move in an ethereal space completely
potential for innovation that can be separate from the different physical
subsumed; secondly, platforms have a geographical scales. On the contrary, today
profound infrastructural effect – just as in digital innovation’s primacy is geopolitical,
the last two centuries cities were broken within a more general process of the
up and redrawn by railways, motorways redefinition of globalization. If, on the one
and airports, platforms now decompose hand, platforms have an effect on state
and thoroughly redefine urban flows; territoriality, imposing norms and forms of
thirdly, the platforms further globalize the life through their power to manage flows,
urban, affecting its forms of property and on the other hand, states are working on
command, as well as its imaginaries and building alliances with digital companies
the ways it is crossed; and fourthly, high or on creating autonomous infrastructures
tech urbanism develops its own for the control and use of data. The digital
architecture and specific regimes of colonialism of platforms – that penetrates
habitation that increasingly resemble urban spaces to subsume their productive
navigation practices. and social forms – is counterbalanced by
The second concerns the platforms as a the digital sovereignty of states, who
form of urbanization of the internet. Just attempt to impose the power of the
as happened historically with the Leviathan on these new infrastructures. So,
urbanization of the countryside and other rather than exalting states as the enemies
non-urban spaces (“infrastructur-ation” and regulators of digital platforms, we
plus political power), platforms already need to understand how laws and
started urbanising the space-time of the algorithms, the Leviathan and the
internet after the first wave of the World platforms, build and stratify relations,
Wide Web at the end of the 1990s. Their sometimes working against each other
partitioning into apps managed by and sometimes collaborating.
smartphones, their closed and proprietary
nature, and their political power and Mythological machines
infrastructural activity make them into the Platforms are not simply economic actors
urban actors of the internet. The that affect political forms and social
conjunction of these two processes means relations; they do not act exclusively on the
we can speak of a Planetary Metropolis 4.0 material plane of production and
in the making. extraction. They are also mythological
machines that produce a symbolic and

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value imaginary which legitimises their known, the platform model is based on
actions and fortifies their operations, the decline of the company-paradigm and
creating a narrative about the type of work, on the speculative logic that allows actors
societal model and collective values we like Uber, even in their early days, not to
should strive for. It is no surprise that the generate dividends but to have high value
platforms themselves are the product of a on the stock market motivated by an
specific neoliberal imaginary, the so-called economy of promises of future profits.
Californian ideology, combining hippy However, there is another side to this
creativity with yuppy careerism. In this intertwining of finance and platforms: the
vision, internet and technological devalorisation of work on which the
innovations are the perfect tools for platform model is based, and its “capture”
enhancing humans’ entrepreneurial within digital infrastructures, are
character, towards the creation of a freer increasingly based on the production of
and richer society thanks to the full indebted labour. Again the case of Uber is
automation of production and the support emblematic: while workers are attracted to
of artificial intelligence. the platform with the promise of increased
This narrative not only legitimizes the autonomy, many need to go into debt in
power of the platforms through a order to buy the means of production to
particular set of values, but also has be able to work. Thus the mirage of “free”
concrete material effects on the capacity and independent work is substituted with
to force living labour towards its own self- the reality of workers immobilized by debt
valorisation within the labour dynamics and by economic dependence on the
activated by the platforms. What’s more, it platform. La boucle est bouclée. There is
attracts the financial investment that also the way that digital platforms,
digital companies need to survive within algorithms and blockchains are changing
an economy of promises pledging finance: from micro-trading to NFTs and
boundless profits to those who manage to cryptocurrencies, finance itself is now
gain a monopoly of the market. Thus these becoming platformised. There is a new
mythological machines both conceal push towards the
power relations and reinforce their grip on financialisation of society, with the
reality through their ability to activate a promise that anyone can become an
complex set of affections, emotions, values investor and anything can be a token to be
and aspirations. traded.

Finance Work
The intertwining of digital platforms and Digital platforms make it possible to
finance develops on a number of distinct incorporate social cooperation processes
but intersecting levels. On the one hand, within the logic of valorisation and finance.
finance supports the development of the This mechanism isn’t new, but the
platform model, which began in the global platform model allows it to develop at
economic-financial crisis triggered in unprecedented levels of intensity and on
2007-2008 and further accelerated with wider geographical scales. Within it, the
that generated by Covid-19. As is widely erosion of the traditional relationship of

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wage labour does not imply a reduction in human and machine: today we live
work, but its extension to and redefinition machinic lives, standardized and
in new places and tasks, making the manipulated by new computers, big data
distinction between work and life and apps. Machines “come alive”: through
increasingly blurred. In particular, the machine learning, artificial intelligence
acceleration of the commodification of and VR visors they replicate creative
social reproduction (understood here in activities and construct parallel realities,
the broad sense of activity allowing for the mastering some of the functions of living
reproduction of the life of individuals) that labour, especially in the management
the financial crisis generates – and the field. Yet we are not condemned to live
resultant erosion of social spending and like automatons or to pursue the neo-
decline of its socialization through liberal dream of being your own boss on
national welfare systems – finds a new this or that platform.
impetus and outlet in the platform model. We don’t believe that we must analyse the
Mobility, food, care and domestic work are digital simply in terms of domination.
just some of the new frontiers in the There is a proliferation of autonomous
platform model’s expansion. subjectivatisation in the web of the
network: flaneurs who roam the city trying
Algorithmic subjectivities to enjoy the services provided by new
If capitalism is a social relationship technologies without being caught in the
mediated by things, then platform hunger for profit; digital nomads who
capitalism produces algorithmic move from one platform to another,
subjectivities through digital devices, following their own personal strategies;
transmission protocols and standards, and tang pingers who refuse to work at all; and
applications and software. Platforms are the “social workers” framed by the Italian
governmental actors moulding our operaismo that reveal the power
conduct and stimulating collective hierarchies behind the algorithms.
behaviours and passions. Cyborgs are no
longer the political horizon of a world to Battlefield
come, but are already here, produced by Digital technologies and platforms cannot
the power of the algorithm and the be framed simply within a dynamic of
pervasiveness of digital technology. We are domination; sabotage is not the only
cyborgs when we aren’t able to find our resistance possible. Their development
way without Google Maps, or when we creates a battlefield between subjects and
speak to a voice assistant in order to locate antagonistic forces whose result is not
a package. given and whose stakes are capitalism in
Algorithmic subjectivities are constructed its totality. If digital platforms aspire to a
in the augmented metropolis, from when world without bottlenecks or conflicts but
we are crossing the infosphere to when we only flows connecting commodities and
are working in the cloud, from artificial people, living labour constantly throws a
intelligence to bioengineered implants. spanner in the works in order to defend
There is a blurring, if not the complete itself from constant labour, initiating
disappearance, of the borders between resistances that contain a different vision

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of the use and organization of digital We would thus like to have a go at
machines and which challenge the power engaging in a bit of political imagination,
of the algorithm and the concentration of beginning from the real in order to get to
wealth in the hands of those who own the the possible. Let’s take a company that is a
codes. symbol of platform capitalism, a Big Tech
Platform capitalism’s strength lies in its company like Amazon, let’s think about its
extreme resilience, which comes not logistical capacity to coordinate and
simply from its capacity to shape its manage flows across the globe, its
operations according to the specific computing power that allows it to locate
context in which it is rooted, but from its any package instantly, and the number of
ability to constantly incorporate that products and services that it offers and
which is generated outside and against its innovates. Now let’s think for a moment
action, transforming anomalies into about what we could do if these IT,
variables integrated into the evolution of logistics and production capacities were
the algorithm. This oscillation between organized collectively, not for the profit of
inclusion and subtraction, standardization the few but to allow everyone to work less.
and turbulence, demonstrates not only the A slogan comes to mind, we’re not quite
power of the platforms but also the sure where we heard it, but we liked the
irreducible power of living labour. The sound of it: soviet power plus
latter is the real driving force of platform electrification. We could change it to: peer-
capitalism, without which its standards to-peer plus digitalization.
and predictions would not be able to get a Perhaps we can activate the
grip on reality. And so, given this, how can contradictions of our present towards a
we subtract ourselves from the resilience platform communism that begins from
of the algorithm and, at the same time, these two principles. If the digital
take control of it? infrastructures of platforms are centrally
managed, we can also imagine
*** overturning their potential in a
management that is extensive but
And so we return to our initial and most localized, under coordinated and general
important question. How can we act control. Blockchains show there are many
politically in the face of these different types of network. The point is to
transformations? Or better, what remove them from processes of
alternatives do the contradictions of these centralization and monopolization by
transformations give us? Is it enough to taking them over and sharing their
take control of current power relations or ownership with everyone until we abolish
do these power structures themselves the regime of private property. Some
need to be radically rethought? We won’t platforms have become so infrastructural
try to write our own recipes. Yet you that they are now essential to our societies.
probably hoped to find not only a However, it is not enough to take control
description of the present state of things of them, we also need to change the
but also a starting point from which to organizational principles that determine
change them. the hierarchical and asymmetrical power

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within them. How? By democratizing
them. Peer-to-peer!
We have been made to believe that we live
in a sharing economy, and so let's take
them at their word, let’s demand collective
property until property is abolished. This
implies a third programmatic point: we
need a universal guaranteed income
rather than a wage. We have
seen that data is today the most coveted
commodity. We are constantly producing
data wherever we go, and platforms are
continuously using it to adjust their
calculations and their management and
control processes. The centrality of the
wage and its measurement by labour time
are long gone. We have no nostalgia for
Fordism, we prefer automation that
relieves physical effort and expands
creative possibilities. The most important
thing is to remove ourselves from the
blackmail of employment. Besides, looking
at the assets accumulated by some
venture capitalists, we don’t seem to be
living in an age of scarcity.
Towards a world of plenty for all!

pag. 81
 AUTHORS

Rabea Berfelde
PhD candidate in the Department of Media, Communications and Cultural
Studies at Goldsmiths, University of London and an associate member at the
CRC Re-figuration of Space at Technical University of Berlin. Her doctoral
thesis, based on field research in Berlin, analyses the reconfiguration of
labour and urban space under financialised digital capitalism.

Sonia Filipetto
Phd Candidate in Social Sciences (Universidad de Buenos Aires) and a
postgraduate researcher at Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento
(UNGS), Argentina. She holds a MA in Industrial Economics (UNGS) and BA
(Hons) in Economics at Universidad de Buenos Aires. She is interested in
labour transformations in the Global South, with a focus on platforms.

Martin Harraca
Postgraduate researcher at Surrey Business School, University of Surrey, UK.
He holds a MA (Analyse Politique et Économique - Hons) at Paris 13 -
Sorbonne Paris Cité and BA (Hons) in Economics at Universidad de Buenos
Aires. He is interested in society's transformation through digitalization, with
a focus on strategy and competition in digital platforms.

Lungani Nelson Hlongwa

PhD candidate at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan. His
research interests are in technology and society, particularly through the view
of patents. His PhD research focuses on the intersection between the
maritime and digital dimensions of the Belt and Road Initiative.

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 AUTHORS

Tania Rispoli
PhD candidate in Romance Studies, with an emphasis in Feminist Studies at
Duke University. She works on Feminist theories of work and care, with a focus
on second-wave feminists movements vis à vis techno-feminism and
contemporary movements, such as Ni Una Menos. She is author of the article
"Immediacy, Mediation, and Feminist Logistics" for Philosophy and Public
Issues and together with Miriam Tola she wrote an article on Feminist Studies
on mutual aid in Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also translated
from English into Italian Hardt & Negri, Assembly; Mezzadra & Nielsen, The
Politics of Operations. Excavating Contemporary Capitalism. With Jocelyn
Olcott she runs the research network Revaluing Care in the Global Economy,
and, together with Jocelyn Olcott and Lauren Henschel she created the
project Visualizing Care, which brings artists and academics in conversation
around the question of how we represent or imagine care through mixed
media contemporary arts.

Andrea Fagioli
He holds a PhD in Philosophy (National University of San Martín-UNSAM,
Argentina) and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the National Scientific
and Technical Research Council (CONICET) – Interdisciplinary School of High
Social Studies (IDAES – UNSAM) and Tutor in the Thesis Laboratory of the
Master's in Human Development at the Latin American Faculty of Social
Sciences (FLACSO – Argentina). His research focuses on political subjectivation
within platform capitalism.

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