Enshittification: Difference between revisions
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'''Platform decay''', commonly known as '''[[wikipedia:Enshittification|Enshittification]]''' or '''crapification''', is a practice in which companies (usually large ones) allow the quality of the products or services they provide to decline over time. | '''Platform decay''', commonly known as '''[[wikipedia:Enshittification|Enshittification]]''' or '''crapification''', is a practice in which companies (usually large ones) allow the quality of the products or services they provide to decline over time. | ||
The term was first coined by tech blogger [[wikipedia:Cory Doctorow|Cory Doctorow]] in November 2022<ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=28 Nov 2022 |title=Pluralistic: How monopoly enshittified Amazon/28 Nov 2022 |url=https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/28/enshittification/ |url-status=live |access-date=18 Aug 2025 |website=Pluralistic |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260216121528/https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/28/enshittification/ |archive-date=16 Feb 2026}}</ref>, popularized by Arun Maini (Mrwhosetheboss)<ref> | The term was first coined by tech blogger [[wikipedia:Cory Doctorow|Cory Doctorow]] in November 2022<ref>{{Cite web |last=Doctorow |first=Cory |date=28 Nov 2022 |title=Pluralistic: How monopoly enshittified Amazon/28 Nov 2022 |url=https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/28/enshittification/ |url-status=live |access-date=18 Aug 2025 |website=Pluralistic |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260216121528/https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/28/enshittification/ |archive-date=16 Feb 2026}}</ref>, popularized by Arun Maini (Mrwhosetheboss)<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chapman |first=Tom |date=2024-10-30 |title=Popular tech YouTuber exposes why 'broken' Google Search is falling apart |url=https://www.uniladtech.com/news/tech-news/mrwhosetheboss-explains-google-search-broken-715030-20241030 |url-status=live |website=[[UNILAD Tech]]}}([http://web.archive.org/web/20251117215634/https://www.uniladtech.com/news/tech-news/mrwhosetheboss-explains-google-search-broken-715030-20241030 Archived])</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=@Mrwhosetheboss |title=The Internet is starting to Break - Here's Why. |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVYG1mu8Lg8&pp=ygUuVGhlIEludGVybmV0IGlzIHN0YXJ0aW5nIHRvIEJyZWFrIC0gSGVyZSdzIFdoeQ%3D%3D |url-status=live |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=@Mrwhosetheboss |date=2024-10-12 |title=Why Google Search is Falling Apart. |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSGVk2KVokQ |url-status=live |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>, and has since gained widespread recognition.<ref>{{Cite web |title=enshittification |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/slang/enshittification |url-status=live |access-date=18 Aug 2025 |website=Merriam-Webster |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260222030743/https://www.merriam-webster.com/slang/enshittification |archive-date=22 Feb 2026}}</ref> | ||
==How it works== | ==How it works== | ||
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===Switching barriers=== | ===Switching barriers=== | ||
Enshittified platforms that act as intermediaries can act as both a monopoly on services and a monopsony on customers, as high switching barriers prevent either from leaving even when better alternatives technically exist. These barriers can be intentionally put in place - such as restricting the user's ability to transfer data or communicate between platforms - or unintentional, such as a platform's userbase being so large that it naturally makes it near impossible for users or partners to find equivalent engagement on an alternative platform. | Enshittified platforms that act as intermediaries can act as both a monopoly on services and a [[wikipedia:Monopsony|monopsony]] on customers, as high switching barriers prevent either from leaving even when better alternatives technically exist. These barriers can be intentionally put in place - such as restricting the user's ability to transfer data or communicate between platforms - or unintentional, such as a platform's userbase being so large that it naturally makes it near impossible for users or partners to find equivalent engagement on an alternative platform. | ||
An example of this would be a long-time eBay seller hoping to leave the site for an alternative with lower fees (such as eBay's competitors, like Etsy or Mercari). They might first encounter issues migrating all of their listings over to the new platform, a process that could be tedious. Their feedback history will certainly not carry over to the new platform, so buyers are initially less likely to view them as trustworthy, potentially impacting sales. Lastly, the alternative platform likely has a vastly smaller user base than eBay, so, despite any potential benefits, the seller is less likely to be successful on the new platform than on eBay. | An example of this would be a long-time eBay seller hoping to leave the site for an alternative with lower fees (such as eBay's competitors, like Etsy or Mercari). They might first encounter issues migrating all of their listings over to the new platform, a process that could be tedious. Their feedback history will certainly not carry over to the new platform, so buyers are initially less likely to view them as trustworthy, potentially impacting sales. Lastly, the alternative platform likely has a vastly smaller user base than eBay, so, despite any potential benefits, the seller is less likely to be successful on the new platform than on eBay. | ||
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===Platform death=== | ===Platform death=== | ||
A potential end-scenario for enshittified platforms is death, usually caused by a large enough exodus of users and business partners, and a general loss of trust. A platform may not truly "die" per se, but it can completely lose the identity that made it successful in the first place - and might not ever regain it. An ongoing example is [[X Corp|Twitter]] post Elon Musk's takeover. Under its new ownership and branding, the platform lost swathes of its userbase and advertisers to alternative platforms (such as Bluesky after its policy shifts proved widely unpopular. | A potential end-scenario for enshittified platforms is death, usually caused by a large enough exodus of users and business partners, and a general loss of trust. A platform may not truly "die" per se, but it can completely lose the identity that made it successful in the first place - and might not ever regain it. An ongoing example is [[X Corp|Twitter]] post Elon Musk's takeover. Under its new ownership and branding, the platform lost swathes of its userbase and advertisers to alternative platforms (such as Bluesky after its policy shifts proved widely unpopular). | ||
However, the death of an enshittified platform is not a particularly positive outcome. It uproots a long-established userbase and can greatly disrupt their activities. There is also the chance that alternative platforms lack feature parity with the old platform or that they might not be able to support the massive influx of new users, at least for some time. At worst, data loss could be involved, meaning years' worth of information - if not archived beforehand - could potentially be lost if a platform shuts down in some capacity. | However, the death of an enshittified platform is not a particularly positive outcome. It uproots a long-established userbase and can greatly disrupt their activities. There is also the chance that alternative platforms lack feature parity with the old platform or that they might not be able to support the massive influx of new users, at least for some time. At worst, data loss could be involved, meaning years' worth of information - if not archived beforehand - could potentially be lost if a platform shuts down in some capacity. | ||