Collaborative Consumption and Gamification

The history of commons is a historical concept which has been around for a long time. The term was frequently mentioned by Garrett Hardin, an American ecologist and philosopher. His text 'The Tragedy of the Commons', 1968, it was a piece written to focus and highlight the rapid increase in the population and the effects it would have on the world. "The population problem can not be solved in a technical way, any more than can the problem of winning the game of tick-tack-toe. " (Hardin 1968). He is addressing the facts of their future. In 2018 the world is struggling to cope with the growing population and Hardin wrote in 1968 that the problem of the commons is that it couldn't be solved. The modern day commons is the integration into the new creative industries, some included within the sharing economy. 

In todays industry there are thousands of aspiring artists who want their work to be seen. Sharing their creations over social media or uploading on websites such as Pinterest or Tumblr, but this raises the question about the creative commons in the 21st century. If you created a piece of work and spent many hours on it, then share it to twitter, who is to stop a company taking your print and making bags or shirts with it. This is all to do with ownership and intellectual property, and everyone should have rights regarding the safety and copying of their work. Personally, I am looking to go into the UI/UX career path and I need to ensure that my work will be published and not be stolen, this can be devastating for artists and I hope there are no implications like this in my future career. 

(Business Model Toolbox, 2018)

The creative industry is thriving and new openings are appearing in the market, allowing people to make a career in the sharing economy. Companies such as Esty, Air B&B or Uber are now available worldwide and are continuing to become more popular. These sorts of positions are allowing regular people to efficiently make a living in these new markets. "If you travel and want to rent your place while gone use Airbnb. Got a parking spot that’s empty? Is your car sitting unused during the day? There are apps for earning money from that."(Swartz, 2018). It is a way of helping find people with resources and connecting them with people who need them. The image (above) is an insight into the business model to help understand the concept of a sharing economic business. The history of the commons has come a long way since the 1960's and in the modern day we can still recognise them in todays sharing economy.

(Twitter.com, 2018)

Due to all these new possibilities in the creative industry market there are now new ways to put your foot in the door and open yourself up to new roles. Social media now takes a big roll in finding new jobs and opportunities. 

When you apply to jobs; many now require a digital portfolio, they also favour experience in the field. Freelancing is a popular way for younger people to help them gain experience and money. Twitter is a popular platform to help someone reach out and find the right freelancer for you. By searching the word "#freelance" or "#commission" you are hit with 100's of aspiring artists and their work, along with costs and sometimes faq's. Due to the popularity LinkedIn is also a good platform to share work and find new softwares with. 

An example of this was when I personally used LinkedIn to help find an augmented reality prototyping app that I need for an upcoming project, i came across 'wiARframe' and wanted to use the software. I signed up on the website and was 125th in the queue. I then looked at the employees and found the founder and CEO of the company, Jeremiah Alexander, I then reached out via email to see if I could use the software and I was successful in doing so. 

As well as social media helping to create and discover new jobs, some concepts of gaming is also being added into the mix. The term 'ludology' is defined as the learning or study of games, and this is now a popular trend in the current sharing economy.  People are enticed by the gaming aspects of many apps. The new trend of the use of avatars or rating scores and micro-rewards and they are now being used in so many of the day-to-day apps we all use. This is sometimes done to help reduce anxiety and help the user feel comfortable using the app. In the same way how cooperations in the sharing economy work, apps are now using a similar idea. 

My Fitness Pal is a great example of how ludology techniques is used in an app. You are able to track your weight, how many steps you do and also your waist and hip measurements and it displays it all within an app for an easy way to track your progress. "Games are—without a doubt—an important economic force with the power to change our lives radically in the future."(Nacke, 2009).

Business Model Toolbox (2018). Air B&B Business Model. [image] Available at: https://bmtoolbox.net/stories/airbnb/ [Accessed 15 Dec. 2018].

Hardin, G. (2010). The Tragedy of the Commons. American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Instagram.com. (2018). #freelance hashtag on Instagram • Photos and Videos. [online] Available at: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/freelance/?hl=en [Accessed 16 Dec. 2018].

Linked In. (2018). wiARframe: Overview. [online] Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wiarframe/ [Accessed 16 Dec. 2018].

Park, J. (2014). Creative Commons & Cultural Heritage. [online] Slideshare.net. Available at: https://www.slideshare.net/janeatcc/cc-cultural-heritage [Accessed 15 Dec. 2018].

Nacke, L. (2009). Affective Ludology: Scientific Measurement of User Experience in Interactive Entertainment. Blekinge Institute of Technology. [online] Available at: https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:835627/FULLTEXT01.pdf [Accessed 24 Dec. 2018].

Swartz, M. (2018). Making a Living in the Sharing Economy. [online] Monster Career Advice. Available at: https://www.monster.ca/career-advice/article/making-a-career-in-the-sharing-economy [Accessed 15 Dec. 2018].

Twitter.com. (2018). khalil @ commisions open! (@khalilcreated) on Twitter. [online] Available at: https://twitter.com/khalilcreated [Accessed 18 Dec. 2018].

Zückert, H. (2018). The Commons – A Historical Concept of Property Rights | The Wealth of the Commons. [online] Wealthofthecommons.org. Available at: http://wealthofthecommons.org/essay/commons-%E2%80%93-historical-concept-property-rights [Accessed 12 Dec. 2018].