Book Review of The Platform Economy: How Japan Transformed the Consumer Internet

Abstract

Since around mid-2010s, “platform” companies such as Google, Amazon, and Uber have come under intense criticism. These tech giants from the Silicon Valley are problematic because their business model centers on secretive data surveillance and targeted marketing. They are socially irresponsible with tax evasions and liabilities for precarious labor. Their digital media imperialism is detrimental to the world for it undermines independent innovation at the national and local levels. The question is, can it be otherwise?