In 1966, the potential for computers to be used in accounting had just become apparent, and by thinking about companies and markets the way we now do, you would have thought that the situation should have been a slam dunk for IBM. That's not how it played out in Germany. Instead of individual tax advisors entering into individual deals with IBM, the tax advisory profession set up a coop to buy and operate central mainframe infrastructure (don't know if it was IBM or not), to be used by all the coop's members and, while they were at it, instead of buying software from anywhere (like from IBM), they hired some engineers to write their own software. Personally, I find this an absolutely baffling turn of events. The profession realized what a giant disruption the introduction of computers would be. They realized the strategic importance of maintaining control over software and computer operations. They realized that, by sticking together and acting in a coordinated fashion, they had the power take on a corporate behemoth like IBM at their own game and tell them to go stick it. Absolutely inspiring, if you ask me.
As I look at things like Uber and YouTube and Twitch, it reminds me of a friend's definition of Web 2.0: "You do all the work, we take all the money." Given the history of business, there's no reason to think VC-funded platforms will do anything other than extract maximum cash. Great for VCs and execs, not so great for the people doing the work.
I've been thinking about what those companies might look like if they were truly centered on workers and creators from the get go. Sounds like the platform coops are thinking along the same lines.
Yes, competition (from corporations) means it's not enough to say "we're a co-op" if the product doesn't actually work, but well-funded corporate competition could clone any feature that isn't linked to a more egalitarian equity structure. My "co-op for Doordash but we don't steal tips" is far harder to copy, business-wise than "co-op for Doordash, but with a 'food me now' button that picks food for me".
Not quite sure you know how coops work - its not just a nice trendy name to put over yet another exploitative "gig" economy
Co-op doordash turns the entire concept of tipping on its head, contrary to traditional corporate governance, which has incentive to funnel money to a CEO and a board, compared to a more egalitarian co-op structure.
But like any cooperative you can expand your membership to include any stakeholder. Users, workers, customers, investors, etc. It is mainly about aligning ownership incentives and control/voice according to whatever the design goals are of the company.