Information & Commodification

Upon our class discussion and studying Dan Schiller's point of view in his chapter relating to information and commodity, one particular point he made was quite intriguing to me, which was the idea that capitalism continues to be a "dynamic and unfinished process." He means that as more people become a part of the work force or are brought under the wage relationship, new products and services will continue to expand capital. He states that we can no longer deny that information is becoming a commodity. With this in mind and what we know about information as a commodity, my main takeaway is that whether we are aware or not, with information, we are constantly contributing its expansion. There was an example in an earlier blog post stating that our information is being collected on social media which is why we have specific ads only tailored for us. To this point, Schiller states that social relations are creating some type of capitalist organization. On an everyday basis, we offer personal information in exchange for something else. For example, we fill out surveys to get discounts, free products, etc. When we do this, we are giving them information like our names and e-mails, which is then commodified and used to later advertise more products to us. Information has intrinsic value and can be used as some type of currency that contributes to "market growth." What do you guys think are other ways in which we voluntarily use our own information as currency which leads to its own commodification?

Informational Comodidity Society

Within Fuch’s reading entitled Capitalism or Information Society?he mentions some really interesting and vital points regarding the society we live in.  The reading revolves around identifying if we live in a information based society, or a capitalistic society. Conclusively,  he asserts that rather than distinguishing between a capitalist and information societal structure, it is more accurate to analyze contemporary technical society using both of these concepts in unison.

      What I found most intereting about this reading is how apparent this ideology is in everyday life. Think about the world we live in, we see information turned in capitalism everywhere we look, and now that we live in a more digital world this informational capitalistic society clarified by Fuchs, to my guess is only going to grow larger and larger. For instance take all the information that is stored on something that we use every day, our smartphone. The database that is the Apple Appstore, or any Application storage database, hold an unaccountable amount of informational which is turned into knowledge, which in turn is sold as a commodity. This idea is everywhere today, and its only getting larger. 

      Below I have cited a link to a video that talks about how the Apple AppStore is planning on expand the app store, making it easier for app developers to get their apps onto the Appstore, in order to make more money. This new development on the app store is also changing the payment structure the app store (in favor of Apple), yet in return the developers have the advantage of getting their application on the app store much faster. Let me know what you think.  Also if anyone would like to answer this question to generate discussion; do you think this new “improved” Appstore, further illustrates the point made my Fuchs? Thank you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLCmfqJg0M 

Geographic Space and Power

One aspect of the Materialities & Imaginaries of Informational Capitalism that I found to be very fascinating from lecture on September 28th was the power and geometry of space, and the ways technologies have become connected and articulated in a way that becomes a territory to many. Watching the live video of the camera filming the city in Japan I believe it was, was remarkable, not for the fact that such viewership is possible in 2016, but rather the elements to make up space: the routes of transportation, modes of vehicles, modes of communication, buildings and edifices – the loci of identity and mobility, as Professor Herman described that day. The power relations of those filming it, those broadcasting it, those possibly stealing the broadcast, all in comparison to those within it is unparalleled. A being watching over sounds religious, formatted to the plural to say beings/other citizens, then a shift in feelings of safety may fall into play. The interconnectedness one feels when viewing it is remarkable.

Here is another live feed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiiSNr76XH0

This is of a city in Poland, and on the youtube site it allows people to comment/say something. The rate at which people could post and exclaim thoughts and opinions or merely converse is undoubtedly attainable, and free. Much could arise that could halt operations if something is communicated.

The governing body of these cameras must certainly have this space under control and through heavy security in order to protect the geographically owned space, would you not agree?

Fuchs and the idea of information capitalist societies

One of the most intriguing components of Christian Fuchs' article, Capitalism or Information Society? The Fundamental Question of the Present Structure of Society, was his question of whether or not we are living in, as Theodor Adorno states: a capitalist society or an industrialist society? Or in the format he created, slightly altering the question to seem slightly more quotidian: are we living in a capitalist society of an information society? This puts question on what we consider to be an information society. Is the interconnectivity and the so-called 'shrinking' of the world - because of global systems that help connect the world from Northern to Southern hemisphere, or more notoriously the 'Global North' to the 'Global South' - in essence relinquishing a demand for information and connectivity. Is the Internet the answer to all of our problems? Fuchs states that, “…the informational forces of production (knowledge labour, information technology, science, theoretical knowledge) and the capitalist class relations should not be seen as polar opposites and that the discussion about the existence or non-existence of an information society should not be reduced to the level of the productive forces nor to the level of the relations of production” Both means of production, through information and knowledge labour or through physical labour, still situate the capitalist at the helm of the production ship, nevertheless, altercations must pursue for prosperity to develop, therefore, the shifting methods ought not to be abolished but rather acknowledged.
I found this advertisement/promotion for AT&T to be quite fascinating and relevant to the concept of an information society. Their gears and tactics towards promotion are all looking to meet the demands of the public who have a major say in the continuation and discontinuation of world inputs and outputs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPADvqV1r8Y

Castells and the idea of 'Power'

                 Manual Castells suggests in 'Power in the Network Society', that powerful nations that are effectively capable of acquiring and distributing information technologically, are able to control and achieve bargaining power in global political issues. Individuals who are wealthy are not affected by the limitations of time nore physical space. An example would be a business man wanting to know about the markets in China when it is nighttime in the Western hemisphere and when it is daytime in the East. It is the nodes within the system of networks that allows individuals to influence their countries successfully. I find that nations who are able to ethically acquire information and openly share with the public to be ideal. It is important to consider that acquiring information when in a country with power, can be ethically used to advance a country or it can be used against it. There is video from Business Insider that showcases how our planet is physically networked with internet cables, enlightening viewers who wish to know more about networked societies. My question for discussion is what do you think would happen if a dominant nation like America, were to cut off its internet from the rest of the world, what kind of society do you it would  develop into?          

Video of Networked Cables - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlAJJI-qG2k

Free Labour and the Information Society

As discussed in the readings for September 21st, in the onset of the Information age knowledge and ideas hold true economic capital. Along with such, these information technologies have created a whole new production of labour. Although, this production is now unpaid and usually found in the normal civilian. By such I mean there has been an onset of user-generated content, and an introduction of free labour. Disappearing is the tradition division of labour in favour for a focus on  on individual producers.

Although, it may seem as those this has led to an inherently individual sense of self, and isolation from the social process which once accompanied the industrialized work force, this is not necessarily the case. Instead, these processes are not necessarily individual in their production of content. The best example of such may be regarded through the popular website of Wikipedia. Here is a user generated website which survives on the communal sharing of information between separate but co-operating communities. Here a site is able to build content and through unpaid labour, yet without coercing. Instead this unpaid labour is offered willingly. Such is due to the idea that the relationship between social and cultural processes and the Information age are must more complex than their previous modes of production. 

In order to understand these concepts better, I have attached below a link to an article which not only summarizes some of the class readings regarding the relationship between culture and the information society. 

http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contribution/user-generated-content-free-labour-and-cultural-industries

Can Social Media Become a Bubble like the Dot-Com Era?

"Web 2.0," which we now call "social media," refers to the current state of the World Wide Web that is characterized by connectivity, user-generated content, and ease of access. It is a set of technologies, group of websites, and a collection of ideals (Marwick 6). After reading Gina Neff's opening chapter that discussed the dot-com era, which seemed promising to many people but ended with the dot-com bust, I was curious as to whether the same could possibly happen to the realm of social media. The internet and many social media companies, such as Facebook and Twitter, seem pretty stable and promising from a general standpoint. During the dot-com era, people who worked within the internet industry at the time reported to do so because they thought it would be stable for their future. As many people left their jobs to work for new internet companies and startups during the dot-com era, it can be inferred that a majority of the population did not see the crash coming. While doing some research on social media, I was surprised to read that the internet may form a bubble that can burst again. Many people might think that investing in internet companies like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter is a good idea, but think again. To my surprise, an article I found on the internet by Kalen Smith claims that Facebook is not earning or worth as much as it tends to claim, as it overvalues itself. A common mistake is that people tend to base a company's success on popularity rather than on profit. I found this article to be particularly interesting, because it is true that personally, I have always thought that social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn were promising and stable for investments. Perhaps we are too optimistic about the stability and performance of some internet companies.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think it is possible that the world of social media can turn into another bubble that is prone to being burst, as with what happened to the dot-com era?

Here is the article that discusses the potential for another internet bubble and things we need to be aware of to avoid it:
(http://www.moneycrashers.com/dot-com-bubble-burst/)