Digital despotism or platform capitalism? A critique of political economy against the theory of “techno-feudalism”
Published online on March 01, 2026
Abstract
Critical Sociology, Ahead of Print.
This paper launches a systematic critique of the recently emerged “techno-feudalism” thesis from a political economy perspective. This thesis analogizes platform dynamics to “fief-rent,” “data-tribute,” and “personal dependency,” suggesting a feudal ...
This paper launches a systematic critique of the recently emerged “techno-feudalism” thesis from a political economy perspective. This thesis analogizes platform dynamics to “fief-rent,” “data-tribute,” and “personal dependency,” suggesting a feudal ...