Sharing is caring, isn’t it?

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The sharing economy refers to the idea of sharing resources or services, typically through a platform or network, as an alternative to buying or owning them. This can include sharing things like cars, homes, tools, skills, and more. The sharing economy is often thought of as a way to make more efficient use of resources and to reduce waste, as well as a way to save money and generate income. Some examples of sharing economy are Airbnb or Uber.

The idea of sharing economy has started on a TEDxSydney conference when Rachel Bostman asked the audience “How many of you owns a power drill?”, and obviously almost everybody raised their hand. Later she continued, “That power drill will be used around 12 to 15 minutes in its entire lifetime. It’s kind of ridiculous, isn’t it? Because what you need is the hole, not the drill”[1] and then the solution of sharing economy appeared.

https://cordis.europa.eu/article/id/411546-understanding-the-role-of-governance-in-the-sharing-economy

The sharing economy seems to be a remarkable idea for saving costs, increasing the efficiency or access to resources and bringing environmental benefits. By sharing resources, individuals can save money on the costs of purchasing and maintaining goods. Moreover, sharing economy platforms can help match supply and demand more efficiently, leading to less waste and better utilization of resources and can make it easier for people to access goods and services that they might not otherwise be able to afford or that are not available in their area which also leads to community building.

However, the reality doesn’t seem as wonderful as we may thought, because instead of a collegial favor of giving someone a ride, which should be the basic assumption of sharing economy, the ride is provided by a professional Uber driver for a fee. The same situation is with platforms like Airbnb and many other companies which have been dominated by professionals such as Vinted, where the amount of clothes provided by small companies which buy them in second hands for extremely small amounts and later sell on Vinted is increasing. To face this problem, Vinted has come up with a regulation, that people who sell commercially will be blocked[2], however there might be concerns about checking it, since for instance how would they prove whether somebody bought those clothes in second hand or tries to sell his own old clothes to give them second life.

And here appears another problem concerning law and regulations, because many sharing economy platforms operate in a regulatory gray area, which can lead to issues with safety, quality of service and fair pricing. An example of pricing issue has appeared in Poland, where driving companies have begun to cull taxis by offering significantly lower prices and driving without licenses. Fortunately, the issue with licenses have been fixed, but is shows that usually the correct regulations are being created long after the appearance of the problem.

Another problem which arises, is the underdeveloped of rating and reputation system as there is no specified differences between grades. In my opinion, very often when we provide an opinion about an Uber ride, we don’t really distinguish the difference between 3,4 or 5 stars.

To sum up, in my opinion the idea of sharing economy has evolved into a new business model instead of promoting the collegial favor, and companies like Uber were using it only at the very beginning and later used it to promote themselves. However the basic idea seems to provide many benefits and opportunities for users, nevertheless probably will remain in small communities and groups due to the idea of commercializing it. Let me know what do you think about it in the section comments!


[1] https://www.fastcompany.com/3050775/the-sharing-economy-is-dead-and-we-killed-it

[2] https://wyborcza.biz/biznes/7,177151,27813463,zarabiaja-na-vinted-500-zl-dziennie-firma-zapowiada-blokowanie.html

One thought on “Sharing is caring, isn’t it?

  1. 46316 says:

    I’ve been thinking a lot about the sharing economy lately and I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. While I can see the value in sharing infrequently used items like power drills, I’m not a fan of sharing more personal items like clothing, shoes, laptops, or cars. These items just seem too personal for me.
    Take car-sharing services like Panek for example. While it may seem like a cost-effective solution, in my experience, the added inconvenience of having to locate and reserve a car, as well as dealing with potential issues like dirty or poorly-maintained vehicles, just doesn’t make it worth it. In many cases, I find that taking a traditional taxi can be just as affordable and so much more convenient.

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