Middlemen without enshittification

🌈 Abstract

The article discusses the concept of "enshittification" - how online platforms can go bad and how the internet itself can go bad, as it is made up of these platforms. It explores the reasons why people flocked to these intermediary platforms, and the problems that arise when these platforms gain too much power over their users and creators. The article argues that the issue is not with intermediaries themselves, but with powerful intermediaries that can exploit their position. It highlights the importance of reinstating competition law to keep these intermediaries small and prevent them from becoming dominant gatekeepers.

🙋 Q&A

[01] The Bezzle and Book Tour

1. What is the author's new novel, and where are the upcoming book tour stops?

• The author's new novel is called "The Bezzle".
• The upcoming book tour stops are:
  • SALT LAKE CITY (Feb 21, Weller Book Works)
  • SAN DIEGO (Feb 22, Mysterious Galaxy)
  • After that, the tour will go to LA, Seattle, Portland, Phoenix and more.

[02] Enshittification and the Internet

1. What is "enshittification" and how does it relate to the internet?

• "Enshittification" describes how platforms go bad, which is also how the internet goes bad, because the internet is made up of these platforms.

2. How did the internet disintermediate and then re-intermediated?

• The internet did disintermediate a lot of intermediaries ("middlemen"), but then it created a new set of these middlemen, who coalesced into a handful of powerful gatekeepers or "VLOPs" (Very Large Online Platforms).

3. Why did people flock to these intermediary platforms?

• The article suggests that it wasn't because people hated intermediaries, but because they hated powerful intermediaries that could exploit their position.

[03] Crad Kilodney and the Role of Intermediaries

1. Who was Crad Kilodney and what did he do?

• Crad Kilodney was a Canadian author who would stand on the streets of Toronto selling his self-published, deeply weird, and often funny short stories.
• He would edit, typeset, print, bind, and sell his books himself, one at a time, to people who approached him on the street.

2. Why couldn't all writers do what Crad Kilodney did?

• Some writers may be able to write books, but not edit them, typeset them, print them, or sell them on the street. They need the help of intermediaries like publishers, distributors, and booksellers.

3. What is the role of intermediaries, and why is disintermediation not always desirable?

• Intermediaries serve as a conduit between producers and consumers, buyers and sellers, audiences and creators. Disintermediation can lead to re-intermediation, as there is a lot of specialized knowledge and skill required to connect these different groups.

[04] The Problem with Powerful Intermediaries

1. What is the difference between a useful intermediary and an "enshittified bully"?

• The key difference is power. Intermediaries gain power when competition law is not enforced, allowing them to form cozy cartels and capture their regulators.

2. What are some examples of powerful intermediaries that have become problematic?

• Ticketmaster, which has locked down ticketing, venues, and promotions, and uses its power to gouge fans and rip off artists.
• Amazon, which takes a large cut of every dollar spent on its platform and clones and destroys successful small merchants.
• Spotify, which colludes with record labels to rip off artists and insert unwanted content into user streams.
• Audible, which locks audiobooks to its platform and steals from creators.

3. What is the solution to the problem of powerful intermediaries?

• Reinstating competition law to keep intermediaries small and comparatively weak, so that creators, audiences, and other groups can avoid becoming subservient to dominant middlemen.