Developing Country Value
Generation in Social Media
In “Class struggles in the digital
frontier” Eran Fisher talks about Facebook users as prosumers i.e.
consumers who produce surplus value such as user generated
advertisements which bring in revenue for social media corporations.
This brings me to Mark Andrejevic's “Personal data” wherein the
wealth (trove) of social media users' personal information can be
utilized to profile users regarding suitability for employment, loans
etc while creating networks of affective investment that are then
sold to advertisers. But how useful can this information be when the
user is situated in a developing country where advertising and
financial matters (loans, employment etc) are considered differently?
Where the users do not pay much heed to Facebook advertising since
they mostly use social media as a free tool to communicate with
others? Does this mean that the value of Facebook users' information
varies according to their geographic location? How then can the
information/activities of a developing country's user be of any
potential value? Perhaps value can be determined/generated through
other means in such cases. The Free Basics App scenario in India is
one such scheme. Facebook attempted to disseminate this app (which
provides free basic Internet services but charges for anything extra)
to users in India – thus paving the way for online international
markets. This app was blocked by the government since it violated net
neutrality i.e. it privileged certain sites over others – sites
that have agreements with Facebook. Bloggers have expanded on this
debate:
http://paulwriter.com/facebooks-internet-org-india-line-principles-net-neutrality/
http://recode.net/2016/01/19/facebooks-regulatory-battle-over-free-basics-in-india-is-getting-feisty/
Facebook then overtly recruited users
to demonstrate against this blockage. This scenario suggests another
form of revenue accumulation by Facebook. By cracking open the online
markets of developing countries it creates the potential for revenue
accumulation. Furthermore by harnessing users to support these
schemes, Facebook has the means to further their business interests.
Very interesting post, Aynin! I like that you mention how social media sites may play a different role in other countries. I find that oftentimes our discussions are very Western-centric due to our position as Canadian university students.
ReplyDeleteAs Maria discussed in her blog post, the goal of Facebook is conceivably to attract every person on the planet as a user. I wonder how people without access to these technologies could be targeted. Would it be more lucrative to provide access or to accept that not every person can be reached? How much value does an individual person’s information actually have?
Furthermore, I have to believe—as you pointed out—that peoples’ relationship with social media is different in different places. For instance, people that work for large companies in less than ideal conditions must have a different relationship than those who simply experience Facebook through a computer or phone screen. People working in these conditions may also form resistance, which may disrupt the workings of a company if the opposition is powerful enough. I wonder if things can continue as they are… And for how much longer…