The Enshittification of Platforms
A platform may worsen service after users and businesses become dependent on it.
The Mechanism: Platform degradation describes a pattern in which services first attract users, then business customers, and later prioritize revenue extraction as alternatives weaken. The pattern is debated and does not apply identically to every platform.
The Philosophical Pivot: A service can begin as a useful commons and become a gatekeeper over relationships and commerce. The user's dependence is converted into leverage once leaving means losing a network.
The Horizon: Interoperability, portability, competition, and public oversight can constrain the ability to degrade a service without consequence. User experience is shaped by governance as much as product design.
Decline is not always intentional, and technical challenges are real. Still, incentives determine whose complaints matter when a platform must choose between user trust and short-term extraction.
A healthy digital ecosystem needs credible exit options before a company decides that its users are captive.
A platform becomes a landlord when leaving costs more than staying with a worse service.
What would make it easier for me to leave a service that no longer serves me well?