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Capitalisme de plateforme : résistances et alternatives

Ludovic Bonduel, Francesco Brancaccio and Kianoosh Yasaei

Penser les résistances et alternatives au capitalisme de plateforme

Ludovic Bonduel, Francesco Brancaccio and Kianoosh Yasaei
In this article, we propose both a state of the art and new perspectives for thinking about resistance and alternatives to platform capitalism. The first part defines resistance and alternatives in the context of anti-capitalist struggles, while underlining capitalism’s capacity to restructure itself by relying upon them. The second part suggests understanding platform capitalism as the new dominant economic model of contemporary capitalism, and traces the emergence and evolution of the concept in the literature. The third part looks at current resistance and alternatives to platform capitalism, and reflects on prospects for emancipation that lie ahead.

Le coopérativisme de plateforme à la lumière du commun comme mode de production

Filippo Greggi
This article focuses on the limits of platform cooperativism as an economic and political alternative to platform capitalism. To carry out our analysis, we examine the common as a mode of production, suggesting that the cooperative platform movement is part of a more general societal dynamic based on the emergence and reappropriation of the commons as a product of social cooperation. First, we examine cognitive capitalism as a theoretical framework and historical phase within which to understand both the platform economy and alternatives currently being built. We then define the common as a mode of production that provides tools with which to examine the critical points of platform cooperativism in a context of cognitive capitalism in the final section.

La science ouverte comme alternative à la captation du savoir par les plateformes

Clara Galliano
At a time when open science is establishing itself as a normative horizon in research policy, this article offers a critical reading of its internal tensions and differentiated uses. By combining the contributions of the digital commons, the sociology of science and theories of platform capitalism, we analyse how open science functions as a boundary object: it holds out the promise of democratisation, but is also subject to standardisation, commercialisation and technological dependency. By mapping the main players in the scientific ecosystem (publishers, platforms, infrastructures, institutions), we show that the opening up of knowledge guarantees neither its autonomy nor equitable accessibility. On the contrary, the movement faces many challenges. This paradox invites the reader to rethink the political, technical and economic conditions for a truly shared science.

Entre évitement et subversion, quelles possibilités de résistance pour les correcteurs (in)dépendants de la plateforme ?

Caroline Panis
At the intersection of the fields of platform capitalism, economic subcontracting, the uberization of self-employment, and the neoliberal exploitation of language resources, some outsourced linguistic activities, such as academic editing by freelancers managed by a digital platform, remain largely invisible. Many freelance proofreaders are precarious academics, chosen for their high level of qualification but whose work is outsourced in different ways. This paper examines the rationale and interests behind this economic activity in order to understand how freelance editors relate to linguistic outsourcing and to the platform economy, and how forms of resistance may emerge.

Les plateformes d’échecs en ligne : entre marchés et communs

Ludovic Bonduel and Kianoosh Yasaei
This article presents the results of an investigation questioning the form taken by the competition between the two leading international online chess platforms, Chess.com and Lichess. The first is a platform offering a commercial service while the latter is a non-commercial digital common. Our methodology combines online participatory observation, corpus analysis, a series of interviews, and an online questionnaire. The first section of the article presents the context of emergence of these platforms, while the second details their economic and productive models. The third examines their interfaces and features, and the final section compares the way they attract players and manage their user community. Among other things, the article shows how Lichess manages to produce a service of equivalent quality to that of Chess.com despite infinitely fewer financial resources.

Bandersnatch et le rôle des films interactifs sur Netflix : une tentative de résistance aux nouvelles formes de l’industrie culturelle ?

David Gaillard
The acquisition of Black Mirror by Netflix in 2015 revives a paradox that haunts the dystopian series: how can one effectively criticize culture industries (Adorno and Horkeimer, 1974) when one is dependent on them? The release of the interactive film Bandersnatch (David Slade, 2018) radicalized the problem by making the series—that had been a simple artistic and critical endorsement of culture industries—an essential gear in the development of new mechanisms for collecting personal data essential to Netflix’ financial stability. While this interactive film includes an obvious commentary on the functioning of Netflix—as is customary for the culture industry to absorb its own criticism in order to counter its weight—this article focuses on attempts at resistance that the film implements through its technical functioning and certain details of its staging in order to capitalize on its collaboration with Netflix without risking censorship.

« Puis, il y a eu Netflix »… Résister au capitalisme de plateforme : entre choix identitaires et accessibilité des contenus

Dimitra Laurence Larochelle
U.S.-based video-on-demand (VoD) platforms dominate the global audiovisual market by prioritizing English-language content and disseminating cultural norms and aesthetic standards rooted in United-statian values. In doing so, they contribute to the homogenization of cultural offerings and the expansion of U.S. soft power. In response to this hegemonic dynamic, counter-hegemonic strategies have begun to emerge within the Francophone sphere. This article draws on fifteen interviews to examine how young Francophone adults in Montreal engage with alternative streaming platforms, and how they make sense of their viewing practices. For many, using Francophone platforms is both a political gesture in support of the French language and the local cultural industry, and a means of seeking pleasure and identification. Nevertheless, the extensive catalogues, recommendation algorithms, and user interfaces of major U.S. streaming services consolidate their dominance and marginalize local alternatives. These dynamics raise pressing concerns about the future of the French language and Quebecois culture in a media ecosystem increasingly shaped by platform capitalism.

Hacking médical : des services de santé universels hors la loi

Johan Söderberg
Medicine hacking applies the motto “information wants to be free” to medicine and health. This paper discusses a hacker group called Four Thieves Vinegar Collective. Under the banner of “bodily autonomy”, the collective strives to raze obstacles to access and upend gatekeeping functions in the healthcare sector. Medicine hacking is the last resort for those who have been excluded from the public health care system, either because of the steady retraction of the neoliberal state from its former obligations towards its citizens, or because reactionary groups have captured the state and are using it to curtail health care for minorities. Questions discussed in connection with this case study are: What kind of trust system replaces the authority that was once invested in medical professionals and public health authorities? What individual and collective strategies develop in the absence of state-sanctioned and trusted public health expertise and regulations?

« L’Étatisme de plateforme » : « souverainisation » des plateformes comme stratégie industrielle. Le cas de la Russie

Ilya Kiriya
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian public space has undergone many transformations, characterized by increasing censorship and the quasi-elimination of opposition to official discourse. Many media and information resources have been blocked, including access to foreign social networks (Facebook, Instagram, X blocked; YouTube is de facto non-operational). Some foreign digital platforms (Spotify, Amazon, Netflix) have voluntarily suspended their activities in Russia because of the blocking of foreign means of payment. In addition to their restriction of freedom of expression, these actions of the Russian state can also be considered as industrial strategy. This article examines this "sovereignization" as an industrial strategy by showing the progressive process of the nationalization of the sector.

Le service universel au Sénégal, un instrument de reconquête de l’État face à la libéralisation du secteur des télécommunications

Mouhameth Beye
This article examines the evolution and implementation of the universal service policy in Senegal’s telecommunications sector. In a context of increased liberalization and rapid technological change, the Senegalese state employs regulatory and communicative strategies with the explicit aim of ensuring the accessibility and quality of communication services for the entire population, while simultaneously reinforcing its regulatory role and legitimizing its public actions. The analysis, based on a thematic content study, highlights the dual function of universal service as both a market regulation instrument and a legitimacy-building vector. The findings reveal persistent tensions between the economic imperatives of the market and the demands of an inclusive public service, thereby calling for a revision of current governance models.

L’e‑EAS : une approche émergente ou un impensé de l’éducation à la sexualité ?

Léna Billerey, Sophie Demonceaux and Olivier Galibert
This article explores the links between institutional sexual education (SexEd) and digital use by adolescents, in a context where e‑SexEd—the digital form of SexEd—tends to develop. Based on a field survey involving interviews, observations and questionnaires, the study highlights the diversity of representations and practices around digital in the context of SexEd. It highlights, in particular, the gaps between institutional references and information practices of young people. The e‑SexEd appears then as a space still under construction, crossed by issues of mediation of knowledge, pedagogical accompaniment and legitimation of different forms of expertise.

Créativité assistée ou créativité entravée ? L’enjeu de l’intégration des IA génératives dans les formations académiques à la communication visuelle

Asma Djebbi and Nada Ouerghi
This article explores the challenges of training future professionals in visual communication to use generative artificial intelligences (GAI) within academic programs in Canada, France and Tunisia, emphasizing the need for a re-intermediation of knowledge. Based on a qualitative study conducted with educators and professionals, it highlights the transition from manual to linguistic skills, particularly through prompting. This transformation calls for a pedagogy that combines experimentation, aesthetic culture, critical thinking, and data literacy. Training for AI-assisted creativity should not be limited to the technical use of tools, but should aim to make algorithmic mediations visible and support students in the conscious and critical appropriation of these systems.