Move Fast and Break Things

En savoir plus sur le livre

Jonathan Taplin narrates how a small group of libertarian entrepreneurs in the 1990s distorted the original decentralized vision of the Internet, leading to the emergence of three monopoly firms—Facebook, Amazon, and Google—that now dictate the future of music, film, television, publishing, and news. He traces the history of how online life has been molded by the values of founders like Peter Thiel and Larry Page, who tolerated piracy while promoting opaque business practices and sacrificing user privacy, resulting in a surveillance marketing monoculture. Despite unprecedented consumption of creative content, revenue for creators has dwindled, with these tech giants amassing political power comparable to that of Big Oil and Big Pharma. This shift in revenue from artists to platforms has gone largely unchallenged, posing a significant threat to democracy as more Americans rely on a handful of companies for news and entertainment. Taplin provides a roadmap for artists to reclaim their audiences by leveraging historical insights and fostering collaboration. Drawing from his extensive career in music and film, he presents innovative ideas for rethinking the design of the World Wide Web and our relationship with the dominant firms.