The report analyzes a range of critical issues around the governance of digital platforms, with a particular focus on the political economy of platformization.

This report presents emerging insights from the research studies being undertaken under the project. Covering 14 countries and a range of domains and sectors, it examines the current trends in platformization, mapping the emerging policy responses and challenges.

Este informe presenta las observaciones que surgieron de los estudios de investigación realizados en el marco del proyecto. Mediante el estudio de 14 países y una gran variedad de ámbitos y sectores, analiza las tendencias actuales de la plataformización, mapeando las respuestas y desafíos emergentes en materia de políticas.

Ce rapport présente les vues qui émergent des études de recherche menées dans le cadre du projet. En couvrant 14 pays et toute une série de domaines et de secteurs, il examine les tendances actuelles de la plateformisation, en faisant un état des lieux des réponses et défis politiques émergents.

E-commerce platforms have radically reorganized economic activity, given rise to new structures of intermediation and changed the conception of global trade altogether. And yet structural inequities in opportunities and access between actors in developed and developing nations continue to persist. The possibilities for the Internet to be the equalizer of digital trade stands heavily contested. This policy brief touches upon some of these issues and their implications for actors in developing nations and offers recommendations.

This document puts forth a research framework for ‘Policy Frameworks for Digital Platforms - Moving from Openness to Inclusion’. It outlines and clarifies the key concepts invoked in this project and offers a broad meta research framework for the project. This framework has been constructed ground-up from a synthesis of the research proposals from the network. It is intended to serve as the common basis upon which the different research projects will develop their respective research design.

In this background paper, IT for Change maps the key issues/concerns for the rights and inclusion agenda, stemming from pervasive platformization. Scoping the platform economy from a development justice perspective, this paper outlines the many intersecting challenges that platforms pose for regulation and puts forth a research agenda to address the same.