Pluralistic: You can't fight enshittification (31 Jul 2025)

The word “enshittification,” coined in 2022 by Cory Doctorow, author of the article we are presenting today, refers to the gradual deterioration of online platforms over the years. The inevitable passage of time erodes the quality of those products which, being virtual and lacking a physical presence in the cultural imagination, are thought to remain available forever.

In addition, the term is associated with the unethical behavior of large companies, always ready to promise great products in order to charm their audience, only to then raise prices disproportionately. This disrespectful attitude towards their users is what triggers the process explained above, an inevitable fall into the spiral of ruin.

In the text we are sharing today, the author shares his thoughts on the current state of enshittification, emphasizing that this process is not the result of a single person's lack of attention, but rather of “bad policies that produce inefficient systems.”