May I Have Your Attention, Please:
Studying the Role of Smartphones in the Ongoing Battle
for Attention
Author: Michel Blonk Place: University of Amsterdam Program: MA New Media & Digital Culture
Email: Michelblonk@hotmail.com
Abstract: This research aims to describe the organization of attention on smartphones. An
informational, networked and global economy has been realized due to a technological shift. This technological shift relates to the rise of the attention economy. The smartphone and the
contest for the scarce resource attention have been researched along these lines. The psychological process that provokes attention is stimulated by technological features, like
notifications. Furthermore, this research shows that there are social processes and reward mechanisms that stimulate the brain to distribute attention to social networking platforms.
Finally, several possible methods are described that counteract the unconscious attention distribution.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction p. 1
2. A Conceptualization of Attention p. 4
The Development of Competition for Attention in Society
2.1 Exploring the Expansion of Information in the Digital Age p. 5
2.2 The Network Society p. 8
2.3 The Attention Economy p. 10
3. The Smartphone p. 14
Characterizing Smartphone Technology
4. Technological Change: Smartphones in a Network Society p. 17
The Elements of Design that Stimulate Attention
4.1 Affordances and Nudging p. 18
4.2 Discursive Interface Analysis p. 20
4.3 Notifications as Attention Triggers p. 23
5. Informational Change: Platforms p. 26
The Tension of Providing Information and Seeking Attention
5.1 Platform Revolution p. 27
5.2 Diving Deeper: Platform Competition with the Intent to Generate Attention p. 31
6. Social Triggers and Engagement p. 34
Competition for Attention and Social Rewards
6.1 Gamification and Involvement p. 35
6.2 Exploring the Parallels Between the Gambling Industry and Software Design p. 38
6.3 Social Capital on Platforms p. 41
7. Freedom of Choice p. 44
Discussing the Awareness of the Distribution of Attention to Smartphones
7.1 The Effects of Maintaining Attention and Excessive Stimuli p. 45
7.2 Unconscious vs. Conscious Choices p. 47
7.3 Demanding Deep Attention: Driving Information out p. 49
7.4 An Informed User Makes Conscious Choices p. 51
8. Conclusion p. 54
1. Introduction
A YouTube video with Simon Sinek recently went viral. In this video he states that
millennials, people born from 1984 onwards, are having difficulties in life due to the use of smartphones, among other things (Simon Sinek on Millennials in the Workplace). The way people use their smartphone is often referred to as ‘addictive’ (Woginrich). However, labeling the use of smartphones in general as addictive is a rather bold claim. Many authors have claimed that we live in an information society because the information providers and services increased. After the occurrence of this development, a number of authors started to revise this claim on the information society arguing that it is not the information society we live in but a
network society. Castells is one of the authors who describes this development. To do so he
illustrates a paradigm shift concerning technology. It is the technology that allows people to become networked and to distribute and consume information. The innovation of these technologies has caused an abundance of information (providers). Therefore, it is argued that the cognitive skill to consume information, attention, has become scarce. This scarcity partly constitutes the notion of the attention economy (Ash 5). The smartphone plays a significant role in relation to the excessive supply of information and the distribution of attention. The problematic character of smartphone use and attentional scarcity call for an extended research to define smartphone behavior in the light of information consumption. To do so it is
important to distinguish the various aspects that contribute to how people use their smartphone, or how it can be described.
To research this phenomenon a literature study has been conducted. By posing various qualitative questions, the organization of the contest for attention and the position of the smartphone in this debate have been researched. It is relevant to do so because the role of smartphones in the ongoing battle for attention is under-researched. There are different studies that relate to separate aspects of the smartphone in the negotiation of attention. There is, however, a lack of in-depth research that could explain why smartphones have become so dominant in modern digital landscape and how it intervenes in the competition for attention. To conduct this study, it researches the question: how does the smartphone organize its technological, informational and social features in order to appeal to the brain and its attention?
This thesis is divided into a number of aspects that illustrate the position of the smartphone in this competition. The first section will focus on the paradigm shift Castells describes. In this process, the information society as a term is described before its wanting character is exposed. Webster exemplifies the possible indicators for an information society
before stating that these indicators are always subjective. Still, he claims that information as an object is interesting to study. Castells claims it is the technological character that produces the paradigm shift by which one can speak of a network society. His argument consists of three features. He explains that this technological innovation has created a new economy which involves informational, global and networked aspects (Castells 10). These three features are interesting to study.
Furthermore, one could speak of an attention economy because attention is the cognitive skill to consume information and has become scarce as a result of the rise of networked information providers. Information is a reciprocal commodity; it allows multiple exchanges. On the other hand, attention is scarce and not interchangeable; it can only be distributed once. Besides that, one can only distribute his/her attention to one device at the same time, whereas the demand for attention keeps rising. The deployment of attention leads to the creation of data, which is one of the most valuable aspects of modern society
(Huberman 329-330). The attention economy will be discussed to illustrate the connection of information, networks, and society.
Castells’ argument that the contemporary economy is informational, global, and networked creates the framework of this research. Since it is argued that this economy consists of these three features it is an interesting starting point to study the organization of attention on smartphones in relation to the network society. Before moving to this part of the research, the attention economy is explored using literature derived from authors like Hayles and Crogan and Kingsley. As a final framing for this literature study the following section discusses the smartphone as a device that allows one to connect without being site- and time-bound. Thereby the works of Bolter and Gromala, de Souza e Silva, Van Dijck play a significant role.
In the next section, the smartphone is taken into consideration as a technological shift in relation to the rise of both the network society and the competition for attention. To conceptualize the design elements this tool offers to compete for attention, the concepts
nudging and affordances will be highlighted by discussing the work of authors such as
Gibson, Stanfill, Johnson, Lewis, and Thaler and Sunstein. After focusing on these concepts, a discursive interface analysis of an iPhone, following Stanfill’s method, will be conducted.
Thereupon the research continuous by exemplifying the features of informational services in contemporary society. This component involves a notion on platforms and their role in (digital) society. It extends Webster's argument that it interesting to study how information is processed and managed. To conduct this part of the research texts by Van
Alstyne et al., van Dijck and Evans are of interest. It is interesting and perhaps required, to address platforms as attention seekers because smartphones are often composed of apps relating to this notion.
The last segment that relates to Castells' argument on the new economy links to his notion on the social and networked aspects. In this section, it is interesting to discuss how this connects to social processes that might stimulate one to interact with his/her smartphone and thus pay attention to it. To describe the social process that invokes the attention of users, the concept gamification is described using the arguments made by Zichermann and Cunningham among others. Besides them, authors like Schüll, Ash, and Valenzuela, Park and Kee are consulted in this debate to describe the social reward mechanisms that play a role in the contest for attention. This mechanism is described as labour being rewarded with social
capital.
Another interesting development is the more increasing awareness of unconscious attention distribution to digital information providers (Woginrich). On the other hand, this increasing awareness is contrasted by the incapability to disconnect. This contradiction has triggered several questions, such as why is the use of smartphones often described as
addictive or compulsive but do people seem to neglect the opportunity or desire to control the distribution of attention more consciously? The last part researches the organization of
attention on smartphones with this question in mind. This part illustrates the possible effects of the increasing stimuli that relate to the competition for attention and addresses how or when attention is distributed consciously and/or unconsciously. One method describes the possibilities to rearrange the apps on a smartphone according to a less persuasive and more mindful structure. This method relates to the concept of choice architecture. Another app addresses smartphone behavior while driving a car. This app connects smartphone behavior to
hyper attention and deep attention and the call for certain types of attention depending on the
2. A Conceptualization of Attention
The Development of Competition for Attention in Society
As a starting point, it is important to discuss how the demand for attention rose when digital media were introduced. Along with the rather explosive growth of digital devices, information was offered in smaller units with the intention to be consumed. This started when for instance emailing and SMS (Short Message Service) was introduced. The first part of this section will address the information society. It addresses the development that information has become a commodity and conceptualizes the information society. To do so this section will address different methods that are understood to justify this notion; it will also question the legitimacy of the term in contemporary society. Contemporary society is constructed largely around the idea that information can be requested and summoned on anywhere and at any time, the concept network society is in line with this development. The similarities and contradictions between these notions are addressed to explicate the development of information provision. Thereafter it is argued that the rise of information objects leads to the scarcity of attention. Designers and programmers were starting to develop software which was increasingly seeking the user’s attention. The last section will further elaborate on this notion concerning the attention economy.
2.1 Exploring the Expansion of Information in the Digital Age
To understand the notion of the attention economy one must first define its origins. The information society is a concept that was addressed by several authors who introduced
information as a new commodity to society (Crogan and Kinsley 3) (Terranova 1-2). Webster elaborates on this matter and states that besides the fact that people are constantly reminded of the ‘new' information age, in newspapers or other news outlets, there is also simply more information available than in the past (The Information Society Revisited 22). This section starts by exploring the development of information provision in the digital age, during this process the concept of the information society will be negotiated. Webster and Castells argue that this notion should be dismissed because it is hard to measure the amounts of information. Their arguments are closely connected and essential to the ideas of information provision in the digital age. Therefore, the information society as a concept is discussed at first to illustrate the difficulties and proceedings this concept encompasses.
Webster starts by describing the common idea that the growth of information has led to the conceptualization of the information society. A few of the examples can be found “in the rapid and accelerating permeation of computerized technologies throughout society, in the increased provision and take-up of education in most social systems, and in the growth of occupations that deal, for the most part, with information (clerks, professionals, instructors and so on)” (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 22). Webster builds on his earlier work to evaluate methods that could potentially indicate the existence of an information society. To do so he refers to five characteristics described in Theories of Information Society, being: technological, economic, occupational, spatial and cultural aspects (Webster 8). These components are interesting to address here.
The technological aspect of the information society encompasses the fact that new technologies are often seen as indicators of new times (Webster, Theories of Information
Society 9). The social change is presumed to have started as information and communication
technologies (ICT) took a rise in the mid-1990’s with the Internet, referred to as an information superhighway, as the most widely used example (Webster, Theories of
Information Society 10). The main reason why this development in ICT has been suggested as
the trigger for the information society is that the invention of steam power, the combustion engine, and electricity have been identified as indicators to illustrate the industrial revolution (Webster, Theories of Information Society 11). Webster states that a large volume of
technological innovations indicate a social change due to its impact on society (The
The notion of occupational change explains how the growth of information related jobs is understood as an indicator of the information society. The prevalence in the service sector could illustrate the change from the industrial society to the information society (Webster,
The Information Society Revisited 23). Likewise, the transition from farm workers to factory
workers was one of the signals for a change from the agricultural society to the industrial society (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 23) This occupational change shows the transformational power of information itself instead of the influence of information
technologies; it stresses how information has become a resource for work (Webster, The
Information Society Revisited 24).
The next characterization comprehends the share of the information sector in the gross national product (GNP). As this share grows and becomes dominant, one could argue that there is an information economy (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 25).
Webster argues that another possible indicator of an information society is how information networks are understood to change the social organization (The Information
Society Revisited 25). Because these networks connect locations, the understanding of time
and space is negotiated (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 25). Time and distance have become of less relevance (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 26). Moreover, Castells argues that information in society is built around a network of nodes. Each of these nodes has a relative importance in contributing to the network’s goals, which is determined by a program made outside of the network (Castells 3). Information-flows circulate through the network of nodes (Castells 3).
The fifth interpretation of the information society explains that social changes are acknowledgeable because of the changes in everyday life. A few of the examples he gives are the increasing virtual reality products, round-the-clock television broadcasting and the
persistent presence of advertising (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 26). In short, Webster notes that "informational features of our world are more thoroughly penetrative than a short list of television, radio and other media systems suggests” (The Information Society
Revisited 26).
In his recent work, Webster adds one more argument which describes the “changes in the ways in which life is now conducted because of information” (The Information Society
Revisited 23). This argument he finds most persuasive as it describes how life in an
information society is managed or led; this argument is disconnected from the quantitative methods to conceptualize the information society (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 23). This last argument seems to be a result of the five characterizations described earlier,
those are all related to each other and are either the result or they result in a society that needs a change in the way people live and manage the increasing volume of information. The technological, occupational, economic, spatial and cultural changes are reasonably open for quantitative measurement, whereas the way life is lead or managed is a qualitative change and thus harder or perhaps even impossible to measure. Therefore, Webster states that the term information society should be abandoned as it is a rather vague term; it is wanting clarity (The
Information Society Revisited 22). The use of the term information is imprecise and does not
clarify how “quantitative increases in information lead to qualitative social changes” (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 22). Webster questions the new social system that underlies the development of these quantitative notions. In short, he claims that
quantitative measures may seem precise, but there is a great deal of subjectivity and variable interpretation behind them (Webster, Information Society Revisited 27). Although there might be a society in which information has become more important, Webster is mainly arguing that the quantitative methods and reasoning to claim the qualitative change of society are wanting. This argument relates to Castells' assertion on the difficulties of measuring informational productivity (Castells 10). Castells argues that the increase of information leads to other more concrete social changes; this will be explicated in the next section.
2.2 The Network Society
Castells states that the notion of the information society should be abandoned (Castells 10). Instead, he speaks of a new technological paradigm, the network society (Castells 9). It is the new set of information technologies that represent this shift, and thus not information and knowledge since this has always been central in human life (Castells 10). Although Webster and Castells agree on abandoning the notion concerning the information society, there is a difference in their argument. Webster is mainly concerned with the methods for measuring this change to describe the difficulties of the term information society. Castells claims that the informational technologies are representing this change whereas Webster illustrated the transformational power of information visible in the occupational change described earlier. It can be argued that Castells is mainly concerned with the technological aspect, also described by Webster, as a possible indicator of the information society. However, Castells’
conceptualization of this technological shift also comprehends social and informational changes. In his reasoning to describe these developments, Castells gives the example of the Internet as the universal tool for interactive communication, which connects to Webster's example of the Internet as the information superhighway (Castells 10) (Webster, Theories of
Information Society 10). To further develop his argument, Castells describes a new economy
(10). This new economy is informational, global and networked (Castells 10).
The informational feature describes the capacity to create knowledge and the capacity to manage this information. The latter part describes the means of information as a ‘product' to compete with economic units (Castells 10). This relates to the idea that information has become a commodity that is open for trade and creates value. Castells adds that this new economy is determined by the capability to process and generate information which affects productivity and competitiveness (10).
Thereafter, Castells explains the global aspect of the new economy. Information is now available without obstacles of time and place, including core activities such as financial, scientific and technological activities (10).
The last feature that Castells describes is the structuration of this new economy. He claims that this economy is networked (10). This relates to both previously described features, as it shows the infrastructure to distribute or interchange the information and knowledge, overruling dimensions of time and location. This is what Castells calls the information networks; corporations “link up suppliers and customers through one firm, with this firm being essentially an intermediary of supply and demand, collecting a fee for its ability to process information” (11). To extend this idea he argues that corporations are increasingly
based on sharing information and knowledge (Castells 11). An example of this technological shift can be found in the article of Knoller and Ben-Arie. They explain that since the
introduction of the Internet, technology and interactions with technology became more focused on networks. Personal computing started to encompass more social features and “human-computer interactions became more about relations and communication” (56).
Both authors, Webster and Castells, agree that the concept information society offers difficulties as it is hard to quantitatively research the described aspects of an information society to illustrate the qualitative changes. However, information trends can be studied, claims Webster (The Information Society Revisited 23). These information trends are also described by Castells as he elaborates on his conceptualization of the new economy derived from informational and technological trends. To study the technological turn one should address:
- Informational change; the economical product information becomes an increasingly important competing unit (Castells 10).
- Global changes; the reduced importance of time and place (Castells 10).
- Information networks; firms become the intermediary in supplying and offering information (Castells 10).
Subsequently, these developments suggest that the technological changes in relation to the increasing supply of the commodity information have led to social changes. One can study how this information is processed and managed. This last note connects to the next section, as this will describe the rise of the attention economy.
2.3 The Attention Economy
There is a connection between the increasing supply of information, the technological change it induces and the attention economy. This is indirectly stated by Castells as he argues that what characterizes the previously described paradigm shift is: “the use of knowledge-based, information technologies to enhance and accelerate the production of knowledge and information, in a self-expanding, virtuous circle. Because information processing is at the source of life, and of socialaction, every domain of our eco-social system is thereby
transformed” (Castells 10). This quotation captures an essential argument in connecting the network society to the attention economy. It emphasizes that it is not information that is crucial for the paradigm shift. Instead, the information trends are crucial, as the technologies to process information allow social change. These new trends in processing and managing information are both cause and effect for the economic and social changes, they create the virtuous circle.
However, there is also a difference that should be pointed out before elaborating on the notion concerning the attention economy. Where information as the “new type of commodity challenged the established economic models,attention seems to bring with it a recoding of the economy of new media along more orthodox lines” (Terranova 2). This both contravenes and relates to the notion that information as a commodity is difficult to research quantitatively. Webster argued that information is hard to measure which means that the supply and demand model for this commodity becomes problematic. This economic model was based on earlier forms of society, such as the industrial society. However, Terranova argues that attention as the counterpart of information allows this new economy to be structured according to traditional models (2). Attention is measured extensively; data is created as users pay attention to an interface which often presents some form of information (Grosser). In this case, it is content that ultimately creates new and valuable information, with the help of human interactions (attention). These interactions are financialized and marketed (Terranova 3). As attention is scarce and measurable, it can become a sort of capital (Terranova 2). This brings us to the next part of Terranova’s argument; the restructuring of new media economics due to attention as a scarce resource.
The presumed author who was the first to describe the consequences of an
information-rich world in relation to attention was Simon. Simon claimed that the increasing supply of information led to a scarcity of attention; information consumes the attention of its receivers (40). To be able to understand this phenomenon in which attention has become a scarce resource one should also understand the shift in providing content. Huberman notes
that the traditional media were constructed around the concept of the few providing information for the many (329). Since digital media were developed, the way content has been spread has led to more democratization (Webster, The Information Society Revisited 23). Digital media have allowed users to participate in spreading content and thus information, which is often referred to as crowdsourcing (Huberman 329). Because of the ubiquitous spread of content, information becomes plentiful (Huberman 330). This democratization is highlighted in the book of Van Alstyne, et al., in which they state that previously there used to be a gatekeeper who was responsible for picking out the most valuable
content/information/products (Ch. 1). Technological resources to offer products/information in contemporary society allows people to become the gatekeepers themselves, in large numbers and often combined with metadata (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This technological feature connects to what had been described earlier as the informational capacity to create and manage knowledge, and more concretely how the Internet was referred to as the informational superhighway (Castells 10) (Webster, Theories of Information Society 10). Therefore, Castells argued one should speak about a network society when describing the new technological paradigm (9). This illustrates how these two conceptualizations are connected. Ultimately, it has become more important to distribute content to consumers and thereby gain their
attention.
Furthermore, attention is described by Crogan and Kinsley with respect to
commodifying, quantifying and training attention (3). More extensively they propose four ways to identify this: the inversion of the ‘information society’, cognitive capitalism, taking care of brain and spirit and online intelligence (Crogan and Kinsley 3-4). It has been argued that the information society as a term might be wanting. The inversion of the information society comprehends the idea that information has become plentiful and attention scarce. Inversing this term adds to the consensus that the notion of an information society is not sufficient (anymore) and that the economy has been revised along normative market economics (Terranova 3). Information is reciprocal; it can be exchanged perpetually and technology, being digitization and networking, has developed in such a way that there is a multitude of distribution and access points (Terranova 3). This idea relates to what Huberman argues when he states that this inversion results in a resource (information) almost deprived of any monetary value (330). Attention, on the other hand, is a unilateral resource. A person can only focus attention on one unit of information at a time. Afterwards, attention has value in the form of data, being the constructed information on attention. However, it is no longer possible to exchange the actual attention as a resource. Besides that, the time available for
information consumption is limited (Terranova 2). This makes attention scarce and thus valuable (Huberman 330) (Terranova 2). As Terranova argues: “By consuming attention and making it scarce, the wealth of information creates poverty that in its turn produces the conditions for a new market to emerge” (4). In other words, as the supply of information rises, the scarcity of attention increases.
Furthermore, it is interesting to mention that Crogan and Kingsley state that the quality of the paid attention has become a concern because of the decrease of the monopoly of traditional mass media and the increasing quest for attention (6). This can result in the transience of rational choices regarding attention distribution (Crogan and Kingsley 7). Attention is often commodified; it can become a process involving unconscious or sub-conscious choices (Crogan and Kingsley 7). This means that the quality of the paid attention can fluctuate.
Crogan and Kingsley's notion of cognitive capitalism describes how leisure time within the attention economy has decreased. An increase of the interactions with content and the scarcity of attention has created the complexity called free labor. More people are
spending their leisure time ‘working' for different kinds of content providers, who measure attention. People use parts of their (leisure) time for free labor which effectuates a crisis on income (Crogan and Kingsley 8). Users work, with attention as labor, without being rewarded with a salary. The term ‘paying attention' implies that users pay with attention for the content provided. Users create value for companies via interactions with content and instantly pay for them with their attention. Attention produces value via information consumption (Beller in Crogan and Kingsley 9). Therefore, it has been argued that the line between leisure and labour has become more opaque (Galloway 135).
In this section, the brain and spirit are addressed when it comes to attention. Crogan and Kingsley elaborate on the brain's plasticity which allows a reprogramming or sculpturing of the brain (13). The hyper-socialization of attention does not only affect social processes but also has a neurological effect (Crogan and Kingsley 13). Hayles has described how the increasing forms of stimuli can lead to a shift in cognitive styles, effected by means of generations (187). The counterparts of this shift she describes are hyper attention and deep attention. The latter describes how focus can be retained for a longer period, without being distracted by other streams of information and stimuli (Hayles 187). Hyper attention,
however, describes how one switches between information streams, searching for high levels of stimuli and trying to exclude boredom (Hayles 187). Hyper attention is constructed around the idea of competition for one’s attention as it creates higher alertness and capabilities to
negotiate environments (Hayles 188). Stiegler takes this notion one step further when he argues that the introduction of new media has led to diminishing capabilities of deep attention and the probable correlation of the attention technologies related to new media and increasing attention disorders (Stiegler in Crogan and Kingsley 12).
In addition, Crogan and Kingsley highlight both the positive and negative aspects of the introduction of new media in relation to the attention capacities, or as they call it: online intelligence (14). In their article, they refer to Carr who argues that the brain is now
restructured due to the network society. It is stated by Carr that the brain needs and wants small chunks of information that follow each other up, as fast as possible (10). This pushes aside the linear mind, which can be free of distraction, calm and focused (Carr 10).
So, where information is a new commodity challenging the older economic models, attention is the scarce resource that is being exhausted due to the increasing supply of
information and thus the demand for attention. There is no source that can, instantly, provide more attention. Free labour explains how users pay attention to interfaces for content to become valuable, it is a one-sided process for value creation. Besides this socio-political phenomenon, there is a neurological effect that needs to be discussed. The scarcity of
attention creates a hyper-social process to provide information which reprograms the brain. It is argued by Carr, Hayles, and Crogan and Kingsley that an increasing number of users of these technologies are no longer able to focus on an object for a longer period of time without distractions. Instead, they need small chunks of information that are ready to be consumed quickly; which is part of the tactic deployed by companies to gain the attention of potential consumers. This changing tactic of providing and consuming content might eventually reprogram the cognitive abilities of the brain.
3. The Smartphone
Characterizing Smartphone Technology
As a result of the development of the graphical user interface (GUI), digital devices have become easier to use. The GUI has allowed digital devices to create a visual experience instead of a simple visualization of input and output (Bolter and Gromala 41). The smartphone allows users to access different information resources as they walk through physical spaces (de Souza e Silva 262). In relation to Castells’ argument of a technological shift that occurred because of information services (9-10), de Souza e Silva speaks of
technological innovation that allowed users to carry the Internet everywhere, namely portable communication (263). The smartphone has allowed the user to have a mobile and portable connection with the Internet. The contest for attention has gained new possibilities after the smartphone was introduced and implemented in contemporary society. The participation on platforms is entangled with the rise of information services and digital devices. For now, a platform is considered to be an information intermediary between supplier and customer, in line with Castells’ notion of firms in his conceptualization of information networks (11). Smartphones are portable devices that not only allow voice communication but are described by de Souza e Silva as microcomputers (262).
The question that arises now is: what characterizes the role of smartphones in relation to this phenomenon? The technological innovation of the smartphone supported, but also needed, a new segment of software innovation. The smartphone and its portable and connective features opened the possibility for companies to extend their services;
correspondingly, the user was provided access to more content/services. A pragmatic example of this development is given by Van Alstyne et al. who state that the built-in operating system of the smartphone is not only a device offering the ability to use for instance its camera to create value (Ch. 1). It also lets the user download apps which allows the exchange of value. The developer of an app could collect information on the attention of users for instance, whereby the smartphone and the app act as the intermediaries (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This shows how the smartphone can operate as a platform to stimulate the interchange of
information and/or value. With the rise of smartphones, the possible distribution outlets have become more diverse (van Dijck 122). Everyday life will be penetrated even more with information and service providing platforms because of the rapid expansion of both mobile apps and devices (van Dijck 23). The rise of the attention economy is leading to a diverse
infrastructure of information services. Information services compete for the attention of the user and this competition in combination with the abundance of information (services) presents a complex set of choices for the user. The innovation of the smartphone increases the possible stimuli provided by information services, intended as a trigger to get the attention of the user. One example is given by van Dijck who states that users have started watching video content on smaller screens more regularly for instance (121). This illustrates the diverse range of choices in response to the innovation of the smartphone; people were less likely to watch videos on small screens independent of time and place before the smartphone was introduced. Video platforms have become involved in the competition for attention on the smartphone which extended the range of choices for the user to pay attention to content.
The smartphone relates to the idea that the network society allows users to access information less dependent on time and, more importantly, place.The development of
information services in relation to smartphones comprehends the idea that this technology has lowered the threshold in using the Internet (de Souza e Silva 263). Mobile Internet has caused for the Internet to no longer be entered, as it was the case when using the Internet via ISDN behind a desktop (de Souza e Silva 263). Instead, it became part of the physical world (de Souza e Silva 263). Moreover, because of the smartphone becoming an intermediary to different media, it becomes less visible/notable as a platform as it constantly disappears in the process of entering different apps. One could argue that the smartphone displays the
technology to use a networked system, which often allows users to forget “the space ‘in between’” (de Souza e Silva 267).
Kumar and Makarova address the phenomenon that the private life and public life have also merged (333). They claim “cell phones -better called mobile phones- iPods, portable laptops, allow us to carry our private worlds with us into the public spaces. We are cocooned from the environment of other people by this almost solipsistic technology” (Kumar and Makarova 333). Mobile technology and communication allowed users to forget things surrounding them, a form of separation. Intervening in a cocooned form of communication is hard, as it is not open (Kumar and Makarova 333).
On the other hand, the smartphone offers the user a mean to connect to other people (de Souza e Silva 261). Not only are the mobile devices mobile phones anymore, they are microcomputers, remote controls and collective social devices (de Souza e Silva 262). In her article de Souza e Silva talks about the social interfaces as a culturally defined interface that intermediates between two or more users (262). In addition, the smartphone allows users to enter the hybrid spaces (de Souza e Silva 262). Hybrid spaces are described as places that
merge the digital and physical world (de Souza e Silva 263). These spaces are characterized by the constant movement of their users and the continuous connection to the Internet and other users (de Souza e Silva 262). The smartphone plays an essential role in this
development since it allows users to enter the hybrid spaces via the social interface, in constant movement and with a continuous connection.
Furthermore, these hybrid spaces connect to the environment of platforms. Platforms prosper because of the networks they create; these networks often generate their most valuable data (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This connects to the notion of hybrid spaces in relation to networks because “networks are spatial structures, and what guides their existence is the large number of connections embedded in them. A hybrid space is also a networked space, constituted by a mobile network of people and nomadic technologies that operate in noncontiguous physical spaces” (de Souza e Silva 272). Hybrid reality, the merging of social practices acting concurrently in both digital and physical spaces, is supported by the
innovation of smartphones and the mobility smartphones embody (de Souza e Silva 265). Mobile communication devices have allowed “the possibility of moving through space while interacting with others who are both remote and in the same contiguous space via one’s relative location to other users” (de Souza e Silva 269). Mobility is explained by de Souza e Silva when she talks about smartphones continuously connecting in different places in
accordance with the physical movement of their users whereas the fixed Internet is connected to (fixed) routers and servers (267).
The innovation of smartphones created new opportunities for companies to compete for attention. Correspondingly, the development of apps extended the set of choices for users. This set of choices is the environment in which the competition for attention takes place. Besides that, communication devices have entered the physical world via the mobile communication devices, like the smartphone. This mobility has caused a shift in
communication as people were starting to separate themselves from others in the physical world to connect to people in the digital world. This relates to hybrid spaces and hybrid reality, which explains the merging of the physical and digital world and the actions in both worlds. Mobile interfaces allow users to connect to the Internet while navigating through the physical world; users bring the digital space into the social public spaces (de Souza e Silva 268). The upcoming parts of this thesis study the smartphone as a technological attention seeker, platforms as the informational attention seeker and social processes that stimulate the distribution of attention.
4. Technological Change: Smartphones in a Network Society
The Elements of Design that Stimulate Attention
A networked system often lets the user forget the space in between, the path that leads to the connections (de Souza e Silva 267). Bolter and Gromala discuss this phenomenon from a design perspective. Transparency is the concept that describes how interfaces are often supposed to disappear, “the ideal interface is a transparent window onto a world of data” (Bolter and Gromala). Furthermore, the interface is commonly understood to be smoothly operating and one should forget the process of design and the back-end of the interface, as this will distract the user and will make the user think there is a design flaw (Bolter and Gromala 43-44). This will decrease the level of attention given to the right purpose, namely the content that is provided. In addition, Bolter and Gromala claim that complexity decreases the level of transparency (49).
Accordingly, it is interesting to research the interface of the smartphone in relation to design aspects. As already mentioned, the invention and innovation of the smartphone have expanded the set of choices available to the user. This set of choices is addressed in the next section as it elaborates on the concept affordances. Besides that, it expands the discussion on attention competition as it relates the concept of affordances to a tactic called nudging. Attention techniques in contemporary society are mainly designed to stimulate consumption. To concretize this, the interface of an iPhone will be empirically researched along the lines of a discursive interface analysis. The general smartphone affordances will be discussed and by doing so an analysis of the potential attention seeking features, that could nudge the user to direct his/her attention to the iPhone, is conducted. A persistent example that intervenes in the competition for attention is the notification feature. Therefore, this section will discuss this feature, as an attention seeker, separately. In this section, a link is made between attention and the psychological process triggered by smartphones and notifications
4.1 Affordances and Nudging
The concepts affordances and nudging are important to discuss if one wants to understand the elements of design that attract and direct attention. Gibson was the first researcher to discuss affordances. He was a psychologist who was interested in the environments of animals and what they offered them. In his book chapter, The Theory of Affordances, he explains that an environment offers affordances (Gibson 127). The environment provides things, both good and bad (Gibson 127). Affordances are always considered relative to an animal, this is exemplified by the niche of an animal as the surface of the earth is often considered flat through the eyes of the animal whereas it is actually round (Gibson 128, 133). The niche shows how an animal lives and describes the available set of affordances the animal needs (and could use) (Gibson 128). However, affordances can also be created or changed, negative objects could be reduced and enhancing objects could become more available (Gibson 130).
In contemporary society, many natural objects have been replaced or overtaken by artificial objects to make life easier for mankind and therefore harder for other animals (Gibson 129-130). Moreover, objects have the capacity to become portable if they fit in the hand for instance and they can have different affordances if they can be used differently in various moments (Gibson 133). A smartphone illustrates this rather concretely as it has the capacity to be used as a navigation system, camera, gateway to social media and a music player, for instance. Although these affordances are integrated into one device, the
smartphone allows users to put the device to different use. One user might prefer to listen to music and navigate whereas another user might favor other apps like Facebook and
Instagram. These affordances thus differentiate. This relates to the set of choices discussed earlier, the competition for attention often leads to an expansion of the affordances. As Gibson argues the detached graspable object, in this case, the smartphone has different purposes within its given arbitrary name; it is impossible and unnecessary to distinguish all its features (134-135).
Additionally, affordances relate to power. However, in this notion, it is important to understand that power does not have a compulsive character but inciting, encouraging or producing (Stanfill 1060). In research, it is not possible to speak of simply power but instead, one needs to speak of powers, or relations of power, and localize these forms of power according to Foucault (156). This means that by restricting one action other actions can be stimulated, resulting in more outcomes than before (Stanfill 1060). Subsequently, when thinking of digital interfaces Stanfill argues that web design “makes a normative claim about its purpose and appropriate use that both demonstrates an understanding of users and builds a
set of possibilities into the object” (1060). This approach comprises elements of control, limitation and possibilities (Stanfill 1060). Although Stanfill discusses web design, one can think of a comparable tactic when it comes to designing smartphone interfaces. An obvious example is the standard set of apps installed on a smartphone, it gives users possibilities but it also favors apps. Another example is the operating system that gives the smartphone
companies control, as they can set protocols for the apps. On the other hand, it provides a whole range of possible apps to users as well.
To introduce the concept of nudging, Deterding discusses the understanding that humans are not only driven by ratio but also (perhaps mainly) by social influences, emotions and habits (39). Deterding argues that this has resulted in the development of persuasive design (40). Thaler and Sunstein’s concept of choice architecture explains this persuasive design. They claim that design is never neutral and choice architecture explains how the structure of the presented options can influence the choices made by other people (3). This means that a person is guided in a certain direction. Nudging comprehends the idea that attention can be directed in certain directions via different elements of an interface. Thaler and Sunstein argue that every little detail can point users in certain directions (3). All choices concerning the options for users focus attention in a certain direction. In short nudging “is any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people’s behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives” (Thaler and Sunstein 6). So, although the options are perhaps presented as the preferable options coming from a designer, there is a way around it.
One can think of how affordances and nudges relate to the competition for attention on the smartphone. The choices that a smartphone presents create opportunities for companies to offer services that might attract the user’s attention. The conceptualization of affordances helps to understand the set of choices a smartphone presents. These choices are intended to extend the services provided to keep/get the attention directed to the app/software. Nudging relates to the idea that some features of a smartphone or app can produce triggers that might stimulate the user to pay attention to his/her smartphone; it could guide the user in a certain direction.
4.2 Discursive Interface Analysis
After exploring the notions on affordances and nudging a discursive interface analysis of a smartphone will be conducted. Stanfill states that the concept of affordances, which is closely connected to nudging, can be an empirical tool to research an interface (1061). A discursive interface analysis researches the affordances and consists of "the features, but also what is foregrounded, how it is explained, and how technically possible uses become more or less normative through productive constraint" (Stanfill 1062). It enables a researcher to show "the path of least resistance" as Stanfill argues (1060). This method asks "what is available to want or choose from" instead of how design is suited to the needs of users (Stanfill 1062). It is interesting to perform a discursive interface analysis of a smartphone, as this method can show how these affordances can lead to nudging with the aim to attract attention. A discursive interface of a virtual interface is guided by three types of affordances: the functional,
cognitive and sensory affordances (Hartson in Stanfill 1063). The functional affordances describe what a smartphone can actually do; it produces norms and allows actions (Stanfill 1063) The cognitive affordance explains how a user might know what he/she can do with the object and lets the user choose actions (Stanfill 1063). The sensory affordance describes what and how the user's senses can be addressed via the smartphone; how it can attract attention (Stanfill 1063-1064). In this case, an iPhone 6s was taken as the object to be studied along the lines of the described types of affordances to conduct a discursive interface analysis.
As a starting point for this discursive interface analysis, the iPhone is considered in sleep-mode. By clicking the standby button or the home button the iPhone can be activated. Another feature that allows the user to activate the smartphone is the ‘raise to wake' feature which means the phone screen lights up as the iPhone is lifted (“iOS 10”). There are thus several possibilities to activate your iPhone. The default settings for the lock screen on an iPhone 6s request fingerprint detection to unlock the iPhone. One is presented with the possibility to set up the fingerprint recognition when installing the iPhone for the first time, besides that there is the possibility to set up a personal code or no lock at all. Although the path of least resistance here might be to set up no security code or finger recognition protection, there are other issues at stake here. In the name lies the fact that users might choose to set up finger detection protection and a code to make it less sensitive to various forms of abuse.
Another feature that wakes up the lock screen occurs when the notifications, pushed by various apps, are received and displayed. There is a possibility to disable notifications entirely or per app. So, it can both allow the phone to present the information meant for the
user or hide these short indicators that might ask for his/her attention. Swiping makes it possible to either delete the notification from the screen or directly access the message or item. Tapping the message with more force allows the user to answer directly. There are thus several possibilities to deal with a notification here: delete the message, simply ignore or read the notification, answer directly or open the phone directly to the source. One can argue that this shows three potential actions regarding the distribution of attention to the provided information in the form of notifications: ignore, attend and immerse. Ignoring the message means one leaves it for what it is or erases it from the unlock screen. When one reads or answers the message directly he/she is attending to the notification but nothing more. And finally, the idea that opening the notification is related to immersion comes from the fact that this source might expose the user to more stimuli which can attract his/her attention. This immersion or exposure creates the potential to extend the occupation of the user’s attention.
Before moving on the lock screen has other functionalities that offer possibilities to the user. When the iPhone is on the lock screen, swiping left means the user will arrive at the lock screen widgets. This screen presents several suggestions and preferred widgets, like up next (first appointment in his/her agenda), Siri app suggestions and news. Swiping right opens the camera for instant photographing. Swiping down from the top of the screen unrolls the notification center that presents all the latest, unattended, notifications. Swiping up from the bottom of the screen shows the control center in which several basic features and settings can be adjusted, opened and enabled/disabled. Most of these possibilities are in line with the idea that the user can pay attention to information. Quick access and handling of information allow the user to close the screen afterwards.
When the iPhone is unlocked regularly the last active screen appears. This can be an app, mobile website, settings, the home screen, etc. The home screen shows the different apps he/she can open. The question that arises now is: how do these different interfaces relate to the distribution of attention to the smartphone? As the home screen is not necessarily a content distributor but more an intermediary display that umbrella’s the possible information services, an argument can be made that in this screen the user is attending his/her smartphone without being exposed to information. There are however stimuli that could nudge the user into opening apps, think of the red icons that show the amount of notifications per app and the placement of apps. This interface is relatively standard, without thinking of concepts like choice architecture, and vitalizes the presence of the iPhone as a possible information service provider. On the other hand, when one does think of the concept of choice architecture it is
possible to restructure the presence of apps. One could also adjust the settings of notification icons.
Furthermore, the home screen allows users to swipe between different pages if the apps do not fit on one page. Besides that, apps can be arranged in different folders. These folders can have different pages as well. The bottom of the home screen shows a blurred bar in which apps can be pinned, they will not move if the user swipes. Another feature of the home screen and practically any screen of the iPhone is that notifications (depending on the settings) can pop-up as a banner (which disappears automatically after some seconds) or an alert (which is fixed). When these notifications appear, the user can once again ignore, attend or immerse. Ignoring the notification means sliding it up or waiting for the message to disappear. Attending the notification can mean reading it or swiping it down to answer. Immersing can be realized by tapping the message to be directed to the source. On a final note, the home screen allows almost the same basic features described two paragraphs' earlier. Swiping all the way left opens the lock widget screen, swiping down from the top opens the notification center, swiping up opens the control center. One addition is that when one swipes down in the middle of the screen, spotlight opens. This feature allows the user to search for apps by typing it in a search bar and shows app suggestions.
When one thinks of the chains of affordances when a user has the intention to give attention to his/her iPhone, there is a diversity of fluent and dynamic interfaces. The process of unlocking the iPhone to enter the home screen is dynamic, as the lock screen fades into the background and the home screen comes to the forefront. In this case, the user is more aware of the interface whereas swiping the home screen pages is more fluent. Swiping pages creates a continuous experience and therefore the interface becomes more transparent, as Bolter and Gromala would argue (43-44). The continuous interface of the home screen thus places the iPhone to the background as an intermediary gateway to information services.
4.3 Notifications as Attention Triggers
When the smartphone is kept away in a pocket, there are features frequently negotiating for the user’s attention. In this section, these negotiations in the form of notifications and their psychological effects will be described. In his book The Information Diet: A Case for
Conscious Consumption, Johnson discusses the possible effects of brain stimulation. To
develop this phenomenon, he introduces the study by Olds. Olds conducted an experiment: if a rat would receive great pleasure via a brain shock by pushing a lever, the rat would keep on pushing this lever until it died (Johnson 51). In addition, Olds explains that rewards push the edges of controlling behavior (Johnson 48). This section addresses how users are being informed on their smartphone. Developers try to control behavior to attract users because it has value to them. Information is the resource that is offered in abundance and every information provider aims to get their information to users. Therefore, information services often come together with notifications to trigger the attention of users. The definitions of the word notify are: "to inform (someone) or give notice to" or "to make known; give information of" ("Dictionary.com"). These definitions show the relation between information provision and notifications as it illustrates that a notification is a means to reach out and provide information to users. Therefore, the notification feature is researched in the light of attention seekers.
Firstly, this section returns to the brain stimulus, which relates to human behavior (Johnson 51). Dopamine controls the pleasure-seeking part of the brain; it creates the behavior that searches for the triggers of enjoyment and pleasure (Weinschenk). It is closely related to several brain functions such as “thinking, moving, sleeping, mood, attention, and motivation, seeking and reward" (Weinschenk). When one receives a notification on a smartphone in the form of a sound or vibration, dopamine triggers the part of the brain that will make us seek for more in the form of rewards (Weinschenk). This means that notifications stimulate users to give their attention to the smartphone when a message is received and dopamine will trigger the need to find new information. It is thus not giving us pleasure right away but releases the hunt for pleasure (Weinschenk) (Johnson 51). Johnson argues that it is not the amount of information that pushes the limits of consumption, as there has always been more knowledge and experience than one person can take in (25). Instead, it is the predisposition of the brain that stimulates consumption; it pushes the limits of the ability to work through the information that is provided (Johnson 25). This relates to Reiss' research, in which it is claimed that humans have 16 basic desire, which relates to intrinsic motivation (Reiss 179). Reiss’ research is based on evolutionary psychology (Lewis 16). These satisfactory tasks are exactly what
tech companies aim at when they produce attention seeking features; it is the habit to consume information they appeal to. This is illustrated by the notification system on a smartphone which allows the release of dopamine that stimulates humans to seek for new information.
Another appeal to human gratification is related to order and disorder. One has a natural desire to fill up the places that create disorder (Lewis 35). This desire is also one of the 16 intrinsically satisfactory undertakings researched by Reiss, the disorder can motivate someone to organize (187). When one receives a notification that disrupts the standard visual order of a smartphone, the user wants to fill up these gaps or eliminate the disorder as he/she seeks stability (Lewis 17). This is exemplified for instance by the notification badges on the interface of an iPhone. These notifications present the numerical changes that have occurred for an app and were noteworthy, depending on the settings. Subsequently, these badges create a feeling of disorder that can create the urge to eliminate them by opening the app and see what has changed (Lewis 71). This will create the order that is desirable and the stability that comes with this specific desire. However, it should be noted that in order for the user to eliminate these badges, one must open an app which creates the possibility that he/she is triggered by new information. Thereby the iPhone interface provokes new explorations, as the Internet has caused for infinite choices (Johnson 34).
Moreover, the psychological explanation that relates to the idea that notification can result in attention distribution is characterized by the fact that notifications interrupt the standard order of the interface. As explained, order is one of the basic needs that humans seek (Lewis 17). Notifications can, for instance, disrupt the smartphone's standby mode, present a pop-up while operating something completely different, and show red icons that disrupts the standard order. According to Bolter and Gromala, this disruption can be explained by comparing the interface to a mirror instead of a window, it supports the user to look at the interface and distribute attention to his/her smartphone (26). In the article by Tognazzi a magician is quoted who explains that at times when naturalness disappears, one becomes very attentive and alert (Fitzkee in Tognazzi 355). Bolter and Gromala claim that at certain
moments "the user should be looking at the interface, not through it, in order to make it function: to activate icons or to choose menu items, for example. At such moments, the interface is no longer a window, but a mirror, reflecting the user and her relationship to the computer" (26). This concept further explains why users tend to stay in a loop when using a smartphone as these disruptions (notifications) can present the user with something that might regard him/her personally and offer rewards. Therefore, Bolter and Gromala state that the interface as a mirror produces the idea that people see themselves in context (27).
This urge to dismiss disorder could result in finding oneself immersed with new stimuli and information, which relates to the release of dopamine. Although dopamine is not directly related to the notifications on a smartphone itself, it does makes us want more
(Weinschenk). It stimulates us unconsciously to seek new rewards (Johnson 51). By doing so "our brains throw us into a runaway loop in which we're not able to focus on a given task at hand. Rather, we keep pursuing new dopamine reinforcement from the deluge of notifications headed our way" (Johnson 51). It is in human nature due to evolution to seek new
information, which used to be scarce but is now so abundant (Johnson 51). If one thinks of Gibson's notion on affordances one could say that the rise and innovation of information providing devices support the instinct of humans to seek new information for survival within its environment, think of the location of potential water sources, what to eat and what not and how to stay warm. Although it is no longer necessary for survival, it addresses the need of human nature to find new information and artificial objects have thus replaced or is added to nature as an information resource; everything can be found online. Dopamine is the cause for the user to go from one information provider to another which is then stimulated by design features such as notifications.
This process can be related to Ash’s notion on the interface envelope. This concept describes the idea that the interface is understood as a medium, object and technology (Ash 2). In addition, Ash argues that they are always a means to an end, as they facilitate operations (2). What they can produce however is what Ash terms the spatio-temporal envelope (3). These zones are characterized by the purpose to create economic value for the creators and it means that the producers try to fold the present into an envelope experience, keeping the user hooked (Ash 139). As dopamine releases the hunt for new parts of information these
envelopes can overlap, creating a longer span of attention.
Notifications are thus triggers of attention. Different processes stimulate the user to direct the attention towards the smartphone. One side of the notification system is that it can disrupt the standard order of the smartphone. Another side of the notification system is related to the release of dopamine which has the potential to throw users into a loop, or the interface envelope. Both sides relate to natural urges of humans developed over time.
The Tension of Providing Information and Seeking Attention
As described earlier the scarcity of attention is often described as a consequence of the information overload (Johnson 4). This development is the reason Castells argues that a technological shift has occurred. This technological shift explains the idea that the notion of the information society is wanting and that one should speak of a network society. One of the characterizations for this shift is presented by describing the development of smartphones. These mobile devices have allowed users to access information and connect to networks independent of time and place. As these technologies evolved, the accessibility of information increased as did the possibilities to connect. This means that attention has become more scarce. The platform society is related to this rise, as platforms open a world of information to the user via networks in diverse manners, their main resources are information and networks. It is therefore that this section will address how platforms compete for one's attention. To do so it is roughly divided into two segments. Firstly, the societal changes related to the rise of platforms are discussed. Secondly, an analysis of the Facebook platform is conducted to investigate the potential attention triggers and keepers embedded on the social network platform.
The conceptualization of cognitive capitalism, the debate concerning leisure vs. labour and the idea that this leads to the diminishing capabilities of deep focus and increasing modes of hyper attention due to a technological revolution is related to the way information is
processed and managed. A conceptual exemplification of this change is the notion of the platform society. The question that arises now is what this platform society comprehends and how platforms structure information management which leads to the discussions concerning attention. Ever since information has become more important in contemporary society,
businesses have explored the possibilities of making this profitable. The technological shift to a network society, that allowed users to connect on a large scale, has supported the
development of communication to become more interactive (Van Dijck 5).
The previously described conceptualization of a network society resulting in an attention economy has resulted in companies applying business models whereby they deal in information (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This means that they own few or none of the facilities they offer. Instead, their main interest is the supply and demand of information (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This business model has led to the emergence of platforms, which “uses
technology to connect people, organizations, and resources in an interactive ecosystem in which amazing amounts of value can be created and exchanged” (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). The main resource for creating value is information, it is either the product or the accessibility of “customer needs, price fluctuations, supply and demand, and market trends” (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). A few of the examples are Airbnb, Uber, and Facebook (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). Many of the platforms are, initially, focused on utilizing their services to a specific domain of online services (van Dijck 7) (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). One can think of Skype for video conferencing, YouTube for video sharing and Twitter for microblogging (van Dijck 7). Thereby people/companies with similar needs create a network. The conceptualization of platforms thus supports the idea that contemporary society is connected in many ways. This is in line with what Castells argued earlier when he claimed that the new economy is networked and that many companies are now asking a financial reward for the capacity to process information while they act as the intermediary of supply and demand (11).
The platform is described as an intermediary object that creates value by connecting external producers and consumers (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). In addition, they aim “to consummate matches among users and facilitate the exchange of goods, services, or social currency, thereby enabling value creation for all participants” (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). The producer, consumer, and platform are related in a diverse manner, as the distinction between consumer and producer has become more opaque (Van Alstyne et al. Ch. 1). This pragmatic
