Platform economy assemblages: The emergence of short-term rentals through disruptions, recodings and symbiotic arrangements.
Topics: Social Geography
, Urban Geography
, Social Theory
Keywords: Assemblage Theory, Short-term rentals, Airbnb, Athens, Berlin
Session Type: Virtual Paper
Day: Wednesday
Session Start / End Time: 4/7/2021 04:40 PM (Pacific Time (US & Canada)) - 4/7/2021 05:55 PM (Pacific Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 13
Authors:
Dimitris Pettas, Technical University of Belin
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Abstract
The emergence of platform economy (PE) found cities unprepared, lacking policy tools and regulatory frameworks that would enable them to confront the negative effects of PE, while seizing opportunities for sustainable local development. This status-quo is related with our currently limited understanding of crucial characteristics and dimensions of PE, including its extended networks and its connections with various aspects of urban life. While, during the last years, the impacts of platforms such as Airbnb and Uber have attracted the attention of researchers and policy makers, a crucial dimension, that is the broader networks of actors that are –directly or indirectly– related to the development of relevant practices, remains largely unexplored. Building upon the analytical lens of Assemblage Theory, as well as the findings of ethnographic research in Athens (Greece) and Berlin (Germany), this presentation investigates the ways in which PE emerges through i) the mobilization and ii) the creation of ties and flows among a variety of human and non-human actors and networks. Focusing on the case of short-term rentals (STR), a novel topology of STRs is proposed, building upon the hypothesis that the development and establishment of STR-related activities are taking place through assemblages that employ, bring together, and mobilize human, material, and symbolic/ expressive elements: urban and natural resources and assets (building stock, transport infrastructure, public spaces, sites of cultural and archeological interest, natural and cultural landscapes), labour, knowledge, services, historical meanings, and the notions of ‘sharing’ and ‘collaboration’.
