AirBnB Headquarters in San Francisco – Image Credit: Dllu (CC by SA-4.0)
The sharing economy is loosely defined as decentralized, peer-to-peer (P2P) activity in which goods and services are bought, sold, or shared through a community-based online platform. Rather than sell something from a business or through a third party, these platforms connect individuals directly to each other. Rideshare services such as Lyft or Uber as well as AirBnB are prominent platforms in the sharing economy. Online platforms that facilitate co-working space, freelancing, peer-to-peer clothing sales, and even personal lending are also part of the sharing economy. The sharing economy allows physical assets that are potentially underutilized, such as cars and empty guest bedrooms, to be shared as services. The sharing economy is projected to grow from $14 billion in 2014 to $335 billion by 2025.
The primary criticism of the sharing economy is lack of regulation, particularly compared with competing businesses. The amount of data that an individual shares in order to participate on an online platform is also potentially problematic, as it can lead to issues of privacy and racial disparity. For instance, AirBnB has received criticism for allowing hosts to discriminate against would-be guests based on race, leading the service to seek out a partnership with the NAACP in
2017.
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