Marwick used Foucaults concept of Technology of the Self to further explain how the internet in itself can help people fit a societal "ideal". Much related to myths, people on the Internet in themselves can be a Myth. A false persona in terms of creating a profit. One turns themselves and their brand into a commodity. Companies are attracted to the following and thus these "young entrepreneurs" use their ability to reach a large audience and in exchange for money will sell an idea or product to us (product placement anyone?) If you follow major accounts on Instagram you know that fitness accounts sell vitamins and shakes and tea all the time. We see the person using it and assume that this product is the way to achieve that.
The Web 2.0 era praised those companies that used the internet. As quoted by Marwick: "Web 2.0 describes companies that embrace the "web as a platform", "collective intelligence", data openness, iterative software development, rich user experience, and "software as a service." (pg. 64)
We can also relate Web 2.0 to risk in terms of how easy it is now to try and create something through the web and create a profit from it. Take risk over strategy (from Silicon Valley documentary) to possibly create max profit. Here is an example that shows how one can have an idea, put some time into it and create a small company that caters to only a select few, yet still be successful in the long run.
Heads up, its outrageous but you know there are people out there that will pay for this:
https://richkids.life/membership/
It is interesting to understand how Web 2.0 fits into the complex parameters of capitalism in an information society. With the recent introduction of social media as an economic mode of production, it seems now that any individual user can aim to make a profit on the Internet through the social media aspects they engage in on a day to day basis. It may also be interesting to see how Web 2.0 fits into the idea of free labour in today's market. Due to the proficiency of today's youth in social media, much of this hiring of "young entrepreneurs" is often unpaid. It may interesting to question if this is an exploitation of labour, or just an unfortunate side effect of the complex capitalist and social relationships which have emerged in the Internet age.
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