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Tokens

The Future of Money in the Age of the Platform
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( 82 ratings, 13 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Tokens by Rachel O'Dwyer offers an insightful exploration of the digital economy, focusing on how tokens and measures of value reshape our interactions and perceptions. The book delves into the history of tokens and their potential implications on economic systems, technology, and identity. It's a profound examination of the role of digital currencies and the transformation of societal norms in the modern world.
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Format: Hardback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this insightful book if you're fascinated by the intersections of technology, culture, and economy, especially in understanding how digital tokens and cryptocurrencies reshape our digital and physical landscapes. It offers a compelling exploration of how these technologies influence identity, ownership, and value, making it ideal for readers interested in emerging digital trends within the educational landscape.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

The essential guide to this new landscape of NFTs, Web3, Crypto and DAOs and a warning of the political consequences of what happens when platform capitalism comes for the money in your pocket.

The future of money in the age of platform capitalism.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Wherever you look, money is being replaced by tokens. These are digital assets, issued by platforms, that can be traded and offer new types of relationships, forms of ownership, as well as governance. Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Facebook's proposed Libra, and other forms of value such as airtime, special access, and data, are the new currency within an evolving economy.

Platforms are now paying in tokens rather than cash. Amazon's Mechanical Turk offers gift cards, and M-Pesa trades in phone calls. But is this a liberation or a dangerous warning of the future?

What does it mean when platforms become the new banks? Tokens opens up this new world and warns that we are unwittingly welcoming new forms of surveillance and discipline. O’Dwyer argues that this challenges the balance of power between the online empires and the state. In effect, the platforms determine the value and methods of exchange or allow the value of the asset to be speculated over. They are siphoning vast wealth and power with few regulations.

In response, O’Dwyer argues that money's truly transformative power comes when we consider it as a 'commons', produced and held collectively.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Tokens by Rachel O'Dwyer offers a deeply engaging exploration of the evolving landscape of cryptocurrencies and digital tokens, highlighting their historical, socio-political, and economic implications. Reviewers praise the book for its insightful examination of how tokens differ from traditional currencies, while providing a balanced critique of their potential benefits and risks. O'Dwyer brings a thoughtful and witty perspective, making complex topics accessible and shedding light on the digital economy's impact on society.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781839768347

Publisher: Verso Books

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 03 October 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Verso Books

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 25.0mm

Width: 153.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 480g

Pages: 320

About the Author

Rachel O' Dwyer is a lecturer at the School of Visual Culture at the National College of Art & Design, Dublin. She was a Fulbright Scholar at UC Irvine and the Microsoft Research labs, Cambridge; she is currently a fellow at Connect, the centre for Networks and Telecommunications at Trinity College, Dublin. She is the co-editor of Neural Magazine and has written for outlets such as Convergence, MIT Press and the London Review of Books. She has curated a number of exhibitions of digital practise that explore the intersection of art and the Blockchain.

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