The Culture of Connectivity PDF

# The Culture of Connectivity: Engineering Sociality in a Culture of Connectivity ## Chapter 1: Engineering Sociality in a Culture of Connectivity ### 1.1. Introduction - The Alvin family is introduced. Pete is a 45-year-old biology teacher who enjoys paragliding and uses Facebook, LinkedIn, and W...

# The Culture of Connectivity: Engineering Sociality in a Culture of Connectivity ## Chapter 1: Engineering Sociality in a Culture of Connectivity ### 1.1. Introduction - The Alvin family is introduced. Pete is a 45-year-old biology teacher who enjoys paragliding and uses Facebook, LinkedIn, and Wikipedia. - Sandra, his wife, is a freelance publicist specializing in food, and she uses Twitter, a blog, Amazon, iTunes, and Skype for online interaction. - Their daughter Zara, 16, is a passionate Facebook and Pinterest user, while their son Nick, 12, enjoys gaming and social networking games such as CityVille. - The Alvins are presented as an example of how social media platforms have become a crucial part of professional and personal lives in a middle-class family in the year 2012. ## 1.2. From Networked Communication to Platformed Sociality - The invention of the World Wide Web in 1991 allowed for a new type of networked communication. - Weblogs, list-servers, and email services contributed to forming online communities. - With the advent of Web 2.0 around the turn of the Millennium, online services transformed from offering channels for communication to becoming interactive platforms. - The chapter argues that the shift from networked to "platformed" sociality resulted from the incorporation of existing information companies and their increased focus on user data, transforming connectivity into a valuable resource. ## 1.3 Making the Web Social: Coding Human Connections - Social media platforms began as community-bound initiatives like online groups focused on specific niches or hobbies. - Social media platforms were often perceived as promoting connectivity and participatory culture, but they also evolved into a business model, emphasizing data production and algorithms, driven by the need for profit. - Large platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn emerged and became prominent in the 2000's as they generated revenue from advertising and user-generated content. - The rise of online communities and the development of "platformed" sociality led to the emergence of a new ecosystem of connective media, impacting user behaviors and blurring the lines between personal and public spheres. - The author highlights some of the key terms used to describe the functionality of social media:"social," "collaboration," and "friends" - The author argues that social media is not simply a reflection of social interactions but a result of technological algorithms and data processing, underscoring the importance of using the term "connective media" to acknowledge this distinction. ## 1.4 Making Sociality Salable: Connectivity As Resource - Mark Zuckerberg's promise to "make the Web more social" is connected to his goal of making the world more transparent. - The idea that social media would promote transparency fueled the rise of platforms driven by the rhetoric of openness and sharing during the first six years of the new millennium. - With the corporatization of platforms, the rhetoric of transparency and openness was used to repackage corporate values and present them as aligned with those of the public sector. - Wikipedia is presented as an example of a nonprofit model that successfully integrated with commercial encyclopedic products. - The author argues that the shift from non-market to market-oriented platforms led to the blurring of boundaries between corporate interests and those of users and communities. - He explores this trend towards commoditization by highlighting how platforms benefit from collecting user data through algorithms and profiling, transforming connectivity into a valuable asset. - The chapter outlines a new economic model for platforms, where user participation is emphasized as a key driver for profitability. ## 1.5 The Ecosystem of Connective Media in a Culture of Connectivity - The author highlights the ongoing debates on how to best understand and analyze social platforms in the context of a rising culture of connectivity. - He outlines the limitations of focusing solely on privacy issues or the exploitation of users, arguing for a more comprehensive approach that considers the historical and cultural context in which these issues arose. - The author argues that the ecosystem of connective media is not simply the sum of platforms but rather a dynamic infrastructure shaped by a shared set of ideologies and politics, highlighting the need to address the larger context of information control in networked spaces. ## Chapter 2: Disassembling Platforms, Reassembling Sociality ### 2.1 Introduction - The introduction explores the impact of the iPod and iTunes on the music industry. - This example is used to highlight how the convergence of technology, user experience, and content can lead significant transformations in cultural industries. - The author argues that the shift towards a digital music market, with platforms such as iTunes and Spotify, has led to the emergence of new business models and the reshaping of relationships between artists, consumers, and the music industry. # 2.2. Combining Two Approaches - Actor Network Theory (ANT) and political economy are introduced as two major theoretical frameworks for understanding social media. - ANT helps explain how technologies, users, and social interactions shape platforms, emphasizing a view of platforms as sociotechnical ensembles. - Political Economy delves into the economic, political, and legal structures that govern online platforms and their users, highlighting the role of power in shaping online culture. - The author argues that both perspectives, while valuable, have limitations. - ANT's focus on the interplay of technological and social factors often ignores the role of content and cultural forms. - Political economy, on the other hand, can overlook the dynamic nature of tech platforms and the agency of users. # 2.3. Platforms As Technocultural Constructs - The chapter focuses on defining the technological aspect of social media platforms - The author defines "platform" as a mediator that shapes the performance of social acts, encompassing the software, hardware, and services associated with a platform. - Key features of social media platforms are discussed: metadata, algorithms, protocols, interfaces, and defaults, highlighting how these features shape user experience and influence online behavior. - The author explores the role of algorithms in shaping user experience and influencing user behavior, with Amazon's recommendation system used as an example. # 2.4. Platforms As Socioeconomic Structures - The chapter explores the importance of ownership models in understanding the functioning of social media platforms. - The author traces the shift from predominantly non-profit to for-profit models in the evolution of social media platforms, highlighting the role of corporate acquisitions. - The author introduces Wikipedia as a model of a non-profit platform that successfully integrated with commercial entities. - He explores how different platforms have evolved to adopt different strategies for monetizing user content, and how these strategies intersect with broader issues of ownership and control. - The chapter discusses the significance of governance structures social media platforms, including norms, rules, and technical protocols - EULA's (End-User License Agreements) and ToS (Terms of Service) are identified as mechanisms for shaping user behavior and regulating content, with platforms adopting new forms of governance as they increasingly become part of the market economy. - The author explores the role of business models in the evolution of social media platforms. - Emphasis is placed on how business models have shifted from those reliant on selling products to those that emphasize services. - The chapter outlines the main strategies for monetizing social media platforms, including subscriptions, advertising, and the collection and sale of user data. # 2.5. Connecting Platforms, Reassembling Sociality - The chapter proposes a multilayered approach to studying social media platforms that integrates insights from various academic disciplines, including information technology, social science, humanities, economics, law, and political communication - The author argues that the concept of a platform ecosystem is key to understanding the dynamic nature of online sociality, as platforms influence each other and constantly evolve in response to new features and developments. - He emphasizes that social media platforms are not neutral entities but embody a complex web of ideologies and power, driving competition and collaboration and ultimately shaping how online sociality unfolds.