Australia’s Macquarie Dictionary named ‘enshittification’ the word of 2024. It’s a colloquial noun describing the ‘gradual deterioration of a service or product brought about by a reduction in the quality of service provided, especially of an online platform, and as a consequence of profit-seeking’. According to the committee, Enshittification is ‘a very basic Anglo-Saxon term wrapped in affixes that elevate it to being almost formal; almost respectable. This word captures what many of us feel is happening to the world and to so many aspects of our lives at the moment.’ Author, activist and journalist Cory Doctorow certainly thinks so too!
Essentially, online platforms and apps start off being good to their users. (That’s customers; everyday people like you and me.) Then they abuse these users to make things better for the business customers. (For example, sellers on Amazon, drivers on Uber or advertisers on Google, Facebook/Meta or X.) Next, they abuse those business customers, with an aim of increasing profits for themselves. The final step is ‘enshittification’.
The book’s stream-of-consciousness, conversational style feels like you’re chatting with a smart, friendly and jovial neighbourhood geek who seeks to reveal a long-established yet hidden truth to the local community. There’s laughs, tears, shocks and authentic case studies on every page, with a sense of urgency in the core message.
Enshittification is current, complex and confronting, frightening and anger-inducing. It’s also important, useful, informative, educational, enlightening and hilarious.
Reviewed by Mark Parry
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cory Doctorow (craphound.com) is a science fiction author, activist and journalist. He is the author of many books, most recently The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation, a Big Tech disassembly manual; Red Team Blues, a science fiction crime thriller; Chokepoint Capitalism, non-fiction about monopoly and creative labour markets; the ‘Little Brother’ series for young adults; In Real Life, a graphic novel; and the picture book ‘Poesy the Monster Slayer.’ In 2020, he was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.
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