The Work-on-Demand Platform as a Part of Monopoly Capital:
The Example of a Global Ride-Hailing Company
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Maria Curie-Sklodowska University in Lublin,
Submission date: 2023-06-28
Acceptance date: 2024-01-08
Publication date: 2024-03-12
Polish Sociological Review 2024;225(1):31-48
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ABSTRACT
The purpose of this article is to consider Uber’s economic model in connection with Sweezy and Baran’s
theory of monopoly capital. The article’s main thesis is that monopoly capital theory still provides useful analytical
tools for understanding enterprises operating under platform capitalism. It has been shown that companies such
as Uber attract patient venture capital through their monopoly position, which is also strengthened through
marketing, and that their marketing serves as an element of outside lobbying. At the same time, Uber offers
innovative methods of investing and accumulating an economic surplus, which changes the source of monopoly
power. Despite several important differences in the operating model of platform companies compared to the
monopolies of the Fordist era, they still rely on the familiar model of exploitation of both consumers and workers.