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So, this all falls under the category heading of "this private company's product or service is now too important to have it denied for arbitrary or unclear reas
by rossdavidh 4y ago
So, this all falls under the category heading of "this private company's product or service is now too important to have it denied for arbitrary or unclear reasons". This is, in fact, not a new problem; we even have a word for this kind of good or service: "utility".
There was a time when phone service, electricity, etc. was just an ordinary private company that you contracted with, who could do whatever private companies can do. Eventually, we placed these kinds of companies in a special category, distinct from ordinary private companies, where they were subject to special rules (in those cases where they were not taken over by the government outright).
Eventually, we will turn social media companies which are as large as Twitter under the "utility" category, and access to them will be subject to a process with all the bureaucratic checks and balances. It won't be perfect, but it will be less bad, on balance.
Also, like almost all utilities, its profit margin will be tightly regulated, and often it will run at a (taxpayer-subsidised) loss.
- giansegato 4y agoI know reasonably well some ex FB people from the early days (early 2010s, well before IPO). They explicitly defined FB as a 'utility' - based on how users react during outages and usage patterns. I think that your definition is not only spot on, but actually what social media platforms themselves interpret their role.
- rchaud 4y agoSo Twitter would be treated like PBS? I'd love the see the faces of those 'free speech absolutists' if that ended up happening. If they thought Twitter censors too much now...
- JulianHC 4y agoIt is the official channel of many governments and worldwide organizations. The Royal Family twitter account posted the news about Queen Elizabeth's death before BBC announcement.
- sfvegandude 4y agoThose governments and worldwide organizations are perfectly capable and indeed welcome to set up websites to do exactly the same thing.
- sfvegandude 4y agoWhy is Twitter a utility? Why is any social media a utility? It is certainly not essential to conduct business or to go about one's daily life.
- rosmax_1337 4y agoWhich country will regulate a multinational social media? How will countries that are unhappy with the descisions of [the US] court descisions appeal? This problem goes deeper than you would hope to think, but I agree that they must be treated like utilities.