enshittification
nounEtymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁én Proto-Italic *en Proto-Italic *en- Latin in- Old French en-bor. Middle English en- English en- Proto-West Germanic *skittjā Old English sċitte Old English *sċite Middle English schite English shit English -ification English shittification English enshittification From en- + shittification (“becoming shitty”). Coined by Canadian-British-American blogger, journalist, and science fiction author Cory Doctorow in 2022 as a designation for a particular phenomenon affecting online platforms.
Definitions
The phenomenon of online platforms gradually degrading the quality of their services,…
The phenomenon of online platforms gradually degrading the quality of their services, often by promoting advertisements, recurring payments, and sponsored content, in order to increase profits.
- Ultimately, it doesn't matter if Amazon's enshittification is because [Jeff] Bezos was a cynic or because he sold out. Once Amazon could make more money by screwing its customers, that screw-job became a fait accompli.
- Both switching costs and network effects tend to lead to enshittification because platform providers see early adopters as an investment in future profits.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for enshittification. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA