Sharing economy

Lucas Anjos and Tatiana Resende

Also called collaborative consumption, the concept of sharing economy has changed paradigms of economic market in recent years. The development of new technologies, besides connecting people, also provides more possibilities for contracting services, consumer goods and skills in a bussiness model independent of formal economic market (see more information here).
This is model of purchase, selling and trading of various types, including intangible assets such as services and intellectual property assets. The focus of these businesses changed from the economic value of the shared resource and the transfer of ownership to the optimization of each item use. That is, idle goods and services may be used in higher capacities.
Just think about some simple examples, such as the way you consume books today. Do you still buy physical copies to keep in your home? Do youu read all of them? Most likely, you have had the experience of buying a copy and read only once, or even get to read it. Then, having these books at home is really the best way to consume them? Some believe not, because you can access this content without actually print a book, buy a copy and keep it in your home.
New technologies allow you to create digital platforms that provide such content (Amazon Books, for example). In addition, you can connect people interested in buying the book, or a time of possession to consume it after reading. So, just that someone has the interest in sharing a good or service and other (s) person (s) is interested in having access to it, so there are new possibilities of exchange, without many intermediaries, or even cash payments.
Following the same example, you can exchange a book that has been read with another person who has not yet, but that has another book or object that you are interested in accessing. Exactly the same way, it is possible that someone has space in the car and want to share it with someone who is going to the same destination. Or even the sharing of occasion clothes and accessories, that are stored in your wardrobe. Just that two or more persons having common goals are found, making possible an exchange.
As you can see, the sharing economy focus on the good enjoyment, and not on its property (which is maintained), assuming that we are interested in the benefits that it can bring us as use, not in the good’s property itself. For those who hold it, the sharing may aim profit, division of expenses or simple cooperation between people with converging interests.

The origins of sharing economy

Although some people want to advertise this business model as something new, this kind of consumption always occurred. At various times in history, economic agents that have mutual trust agree with each other and promote exchanges that are beneficial to both, through a coincidence of wills. This meeting of similar needs and agents who want to exchange products or services brings mutual benefits.

But this requires trust among consumers. In small communities, where everyone knows each other, it was easier. Nowadays, it is more difficult to get confidence in buying and selling relationships. One of the systems developed in the economic market is the credit history of each economic agent. People do not know and can not trust each other.

The Internet and reliability among users

It is inevitable that this economic model expands through the Internet. You could question the safety of these transactions between people complete strangers to each other. The fact is that, currently, has been a gradual (but robust) change to a type of consumption based on direct trust among online users. This is possible mainly due to platforms that record the history of each agent activities.
A user received an assessment of consumer experience on all sites which transacts. These assessments generate a history that can be used by new users to evaluate the degree of confidence in that economic agent.
Moreover, it is increasing the number of collaborative systems based on trust and on mutual evaluation platforms. According to these systems, the parties involved are valued at the end of the transaction, based on the experience they had. These data comprise the user profile, and future interested in transacting may have access to the reputation of the other party, and so on.
This dynamic has gained more space and there are several impacts on new consumption patterns. Social networks are other collaboration platforms driving, because they help the reinvention of forms of consumption. It is very easy to form groups with common interests on social networks (riding groups, collective consumption, etc.). His purposes are increasingly specific, with various tools to reduce the distance between users.

How it works in practice

There are several models of bussiness and sharing economy, many of them you probably already know. For example, there are coworking studios (working environments share), hitchhiked network applications, sharing the use of goods, access to digital content services (like Netflix), etc.

As advantages, this model presents: more conscious consumers; better use of goods and services; decreased use of natural resources; less waste; price reduction and increased accessibility; lower costs; less state interference and regulation; and more efficient use of environment products, skills and services.

About the authors

Lucas Anjos is a Founder and Vice-President of the Institute for Research on Internet and Society. Has a Law Degree from the Federal University of Minas Gerais and is currently a M.A. student at the same institution, with a scholarship from CAPES (Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education, a Foundation within the Brazilian Ministry of Education). Specialist on International Law by CEDIN (Center for International Law). Assistant professor for the International Economic Relations and Law Courses at the Federal University of Minas Gerais. Lawyer and member of the ABRI (Brazilian Association for International Relations).
Tatiana Carneiro Resende is graduating in Law in the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, with academic experience in the Université Pierre-MendèsFrance in Grenoble, France. Interest areas include Private International Law, Digital Law and Urban Law.