Canada/Digilocalism, an answer to the digital giants?

Published on 06/01/2021 | La rédaction

Canada

The development of digital technologies has fostered the emergence of retail giants such as Amazon, which are blurring the boundaries of consumption. But the attraction for local shopping, exacerbated by the pandemic, is giving rise to another phenomenon: "digilocalism", thanks to platforms that combine online consumption with local interest.

The pandemic has led to the closure of borders and with it the temptation to "relocalize" production and "recontinentalize" supply chains, while large platforms such as Amazon are criticized for taking advantage of the misfortune generated by the crisis.

Thus, platforms such as the Blue Basket, Ma Zone Québec, Boomerang, inc, J' achète au Lac, or the first local e-commerce platform for shopping malls and EVAs have emerged, which allow people to become drivers in a cooperative setting and to have an influence as business owners.

These configurations have the advantage of restoring meaning to consumption and production activities. And, in these times of transition, isn't meaning what people are increasingly looking for?

The consumer-provider era

Whether through carpooling platforms such as Eva, exchanges between individuals such as Kijiji, sociofinancing such as Ulule, or marketplace solutions such as Dvore, the consumer-supplier concept is what makes this transition possible.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, modes of production and consumption have been dissociated. The consumer has essentially assumed the role of buyer. Nowadays, new concepts crossing the two modes are appearing. Think of collaborative consumption, the economy of sharing or crowd-based capitalism. The passive consumer is replaced by a consumer actor, who in turn adopts the role of supplier, volunteer, or partner.

For example, within NousRire, a Quebec-based bulk purchasing group for eco-responsible food, the client adopts the role of supplier, volunteer, and more broadly, partner of the organization.

Large-scale distribution is not to be outdone. IKEA France's second life of furniture or Marks & Spencer's shwopping ( a contraction of shopping and swap), which takes back used clothing from stores, operate on the same consumer-supplier principle.

To deal with this new type of consumer, Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers have popularized the notion of collaborative consumption, where the consumer can become a supplier through platforms and applications. This is the case with Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, InstaCart and VarageSale.

Not just to save money

But what motivates the use of these types of exchanges? While financial and utilitarian reasons are paramount for both buyers and suppliers, suppliers are also strongly motivated by something other than the sole aspect of financing. The value of what they provide is often greater than the compensation obtained in exchange. The supplier must therefore be motivated by something other than the mere financial gain to invest effort in such an exchange. These actions may be motivated by coercion, socialisation, the desire to contribute to society, or even altruism.

Individuals have a variety of platforms to exchange, but also to train, advise, for example with Coursera, or outsource tasks through Amazon MTurk, for example.

In healthcare, there is currently a transition to digital health, which better distributes healthcare provision within territories and allows individuals to give advice and intervene in online forums, groups or patient communities.

Democratizing markets

The financial sector has also become more democratic. Socio-financing platforms such as Ulule allow individuals to donate or invest in projects led by others, while platforms such as eToro democratise investment in financial markets. In this way, these platforms enable individuals to drain capital from areas neglected by public or private investment to revitalize local economies.

Cryptomoney and block chain is another case of interest. Thousands of cryptomoney systems exist, such as Bitcoin, and miners are replacing central banks. Facebook's Diem cryptomoney project suggests the emergence of a "total digital ecosystem", a society centred on the individual, dematerialised and demonetised.

India has already attempted to establish a cashless society by 2016. This policy has had an impact on practices specific to emerging countries, including cash on delivery, which has become payment on delivery. Good news or bad news? Collaborative transactions, often informal, have become much more fluid, but totally traceable and taxable!

A controversial economy

The collaborative economy is probably the most visible, the most documented, and the most controversial manifestation of this reconfiguration of merchant exchanges. The hotel industry is complaining about Airbnb and taxis are complaining about Uber, because everyone can now accommodate or transport other people for a fee. The battles over this issue have resulted in some more accommodating laws, leading these platforms to strengthen their activities in Quebec.

For the authorities, this standardization also makes it possible to transfer to the private sector the burden of meeting needs that would otherwise have to be met by the public sector. In transportation, for example, the offer of carpooling services makes it possible to compensate for the lack of public transit services. Citizens also value these practices because they satisfy many of their needs, while maximizing the use of dormant resources, providing better access to resources for the poor, and reducing unemployment.

However, it is unclear to what extent these platforms degrade work or whether they reinvent it by turning the provider into a "contractor".

An illusion of power?

We also need to understand the transformations that platform algorithms generate in terms of governance, inclusion and user rights. Indeed, the exponential amount of data generated by the platforms increases the ability of dominant firms to identify user needs at an early stage and to assess their payment capabilities very precisely, which can lead to discrimination. In addition, platforms have a high degree of price opacity, since they often customise and adjust prices in real time for each user.

Moreover, the collaborative economy remains monopolized by technological giants, leaving little room for the emergence or survival of smaller platforms. So, in short, the consumer has an illusion of power by becoming a supplier - be it an entrepreneur, flexi-worker or self-employed worker - in the service of mega-platforms.

Can digilocalism find its place in this universe? Do these platforms, born out of the pandemic in a bid to support the local economy, have any chance of survival in the longer term?

According to a case study of small and medium-sized car-sharing hubs in China, the only chance of survival for the smaller hubs is to address the needs not addressed by the giants, including the customer segments served, the key partners, the value proposition offered, and the cost and revenue structure.

Nonetheless, recent developments in digital technologies have certainly provided more opportunities for individuals to contribute. This digital transition, already well underway, has accelerated with the Covid-19 pandemic and will likely not stop any time soon!

Source: theconversation .com


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