Short Political Economy of the Internet

Available open access digitally under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.Who governs the internet? This timely sociological study explores how internet platforms concentrate economic power, organize markets and social interaction, and challenge democratic regulation. It traces how private companies came to dominate the online economy and examines their influence on markets, user behaviour and social relationships. Bringing together political economy, organizational sociology and platform studies, Ulrich Dolata analyses technology companies not simply as market actors, but as powerful institutions that govern online activity and perform important social and regulatory roles. With particular attention to European initiatives, the book assesses the possibilities and limits of state and civil-society intervention. This is a key resource for scholars of digital sociology, political economy and platform studies.