The Duality of Peer Production Infrastructure for the Digital Commons, Free Labor for Free-Riding Firms

This chapter examines a series of productive tensions located in and around peer production. It begins by interrogating the meaning of infrastructure for peer-to-peer models, and find that some forms of peer infrastructure have thrived, whilst others were effectively banned. The chapter considers Yochai Benkler's influential theorization of “commons-based peer production,” and asks to what extent it embodies Western, first world assumptions. It explores at length the relationship of peer production to the dominant economy. The chapter outlines claims about peer production's transformational potential, which are inspired by Benkler's model and often imbued with techno-utopian overtones. It then focuses on the organizational and cultural characteristics which enabled co-optation by, and hybridization with firms. The chapter also focuses on peer production's political economy. It then provides an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.