About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

13 L. & Ethics Hum. Rts. 239 (2019)
If Uber Were a Cooperative: A Democratically Biased Analysis of Platform Economy

handle is hein.journals/lehr13 and id is 245 raw text is: Law & Ethics of Human Rights 2019; 13(2): 239-262 Yifat Sole[* If Uber were a Cooperative: A Democratically Biased Analysis of Platform Economy https://doi.org/10.1515/lehr-2019-2007 Abstract: Online, or platform economy, is no different than offline economy. Platforms are in this day and age what land was in agrarian times and the means of production for the industrial revolution period - i.e., basic resources. As such, the prime questions to be addressed are the same as ever: who owns the resources, who controls them, who profits from them, and who makes the decisions regarding all of the above. Analyzing online economy by these parameters elicits three major catego- ries: Online Capitalism - economic activities designed to maximize profits; Sharing Economy, using a substance-based definition - allowing underused resources to be used by others and adding social value: connecting people, contributing to the environment, and creating communities; and Platform Cooperativism - using online technology to promote economic and social goals and interests, as in the sharing notion, adding power-building compo- nents: ownership, control - democracy. This classification is both an identifying tool that allows for an objective evaluation of enterprises and a basis for future legislation and public policy that favors democratic and community-based enterprises. Platform Economy poses great threats: It allows for concentration of power, wealth and control, but it also holds great opportunities as it constructs mech- anisms that enable mass participation in decision-making, and thus allows to develop a new and exciting future in which democracy re-claims its front seat, and people regain the power to make a difference. Keywords: platform cooperatives, democracy, law, sharing economy, economic democracy, platform capitalism, online economy Introduction On May 7, 2016, the people of Austin, Texas were called to participate in a public referendum to vote on Proposition 1 - which proposed to revoke the city *Corresponding author: Yifat Solel, LL.B., L.L.M, Chairperson - The Israeli Cooperatives Alliance for Social, Economic and Environmental Justice, Haifa, Israel, E-mail: yifat.solel@gmail.com DE GRUYTER

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most