A Multi-Stakeholder Approach for Digital Platforms: Lessons Learned From the World of Technical Standardization

Working conditions of gig workers on platforms such as Uber, Lyft, and Deliveroo raise concerns due to lack of labor protections, low pay, and precarious working arrangements. The recent Directive proposal by the European Commission on Platform Work (Directive 2021/880) aims to address such concerns. However, it provides guidelines for afterwards repair rather than for the anticipation of recurring problems related to platforms. Network effects, inherent to platform companies, lead to winner-takes-all situations and, next, the disadvantages of monopolistic behavior. Moreover, the profit-driven business models of the platform companies lead to societal disadvantages such as poor labor conditions. Then the network effects and resulting monopolistic situation multiply these negative side effects. While the European Directive represents a step forward, it does not prevent new cases of misbehavior. In this blog we argue that policy makers willing to mitigate negative effects of platforms may learn lessons from the field of standardization — a comprehensive multi-stakeholder approach may anticipate dominance of new platforms and promote a fairer and more transparent economy. To achieve this, a concerted effort from policymakers, academics, industry, and civil society is needed, to ensure that platforms operate in a way that promotes social dialogue between all stakeholders.