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posted by janrinok on Wednesday January 25 2023, @03:02PM   Printer-friendly
from the circle-of-life dept.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/#hey-guys

Here is how platforms die: first, they are good to their users; then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers; finally, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves. Then, they die.

I call this enshittification, and it is a seemingly inevitable consequence arising from the combination of the ease of changing how a platform allocates value, combined with the nature of a "two sided market," where a platform sits between buyers and sellers, hold each hostage to the other, raking off an ever-larger share of the value that passes between them.

[...] Search Amazon for "cat beds" and the entire first screen is ads, including ads for products Amazon cloned from its own sellers, putting them out of business (third parties have to pay 45% in junk fees to Amazon, but Amazon doesn't charge itself these fees). All told, the first five screens of results for "cat bed" are 50% ads.

This is enshittification: surpluses are first directed to users; then, once they're locked in, surpluses go to suppliers; then once they're locked in, the surplus is handed to shareholders and the platform becomes a useless pile of shit. From mobile app stores to Steam, from Facebook to Twitter, this is the enshittification lifecycle.


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  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday January 26 2023, @06:42PM (2 children)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Thursday January 26 2023, @06:42PM (#1288756) Journal

    I give you, just as a random example, the entire leadup to the January 6th insurrection.

    And that's relevant why? The lead up didn't commit any crimes except allegedly that of seditious conspiracy. It wouldn't count as incitement to violence since the participants all had plenty of opportunity to reflect on their future actions. That's a legal thing [ncac.org].

    Three elements must be met: (1) the speaker must intend to cause violence, (2) he or she must intend that the violence occur immediately, and (3) the violence must be likely to occur immediately.

    Moral of the story: learn what legal phrases mean before you drop them in an internet conversation where everyone has access to Google.

  • (Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Friday January 27 2023, @01:47AM (1 child)

    by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Friday January 27 2023, @01:47AM (#1288833) Journal

    "Stochastic terrorism" is a bit too advanced a concept for you I see. No one so blind as he who will not look, of course :)

    --
    I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Friday January 27 2023, @04:45AM

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Friday January 27 2023, @04:45AM (#1288854) Journal

      "Stochastic terrorism" is a bit too advanced a concept for you I see.

      More too bullshit a phrase. I see serious use of the phrase as a sign of weaseling.