Pradip Ninan Thomas - Böcker

This book explores the past and present of information infrastructures in India. Grounded in infrastructure theory, it explores the historical continuities between information infrastructures in colonial and post-colonial India and the compulsions of information infrastructures in contemporary India. This volume highlights the roles played by private and public sector entities in shaping information infrastructures in India, the political economy of growth in this sector and the challenges faced by the State in regulating information platforms that are also information infrastructures. It includes separate chapters on oceanic cable infrastructures that account for more than 90 per cent of data traffic between India and the rest of the world and the political economy of India's satellite program. Taking the 'long view', it argues that the provisionings of information infrastructures are by no means straight forward, that they are always expressions that are shaped by internal and external contestations, by ideological ends and business imperatives, the needs of consumers/citizens and the State, that there is a politics of infrastructure that needs to be accounted for, and that there always are winners and losers in large infrastructural projects such as Digital India.

Over the last decade or two, a handful of powerful, monopolist platforms have embraced our lives worldwide. They intermediate our socialities and relationships, what we search for on the Internet, and our online purchases. We are living in a global economy that is fuelled by the monetization of affect. One is now only too aware that various platforms are very systematically using the advantages stemming from algorithmic power and platform externalities to mine and privatize personal data that is in turn sold to advertisers who target not just the present but also future economic behaviours of users. One now also hears of the complicity of some of these platforms in data breaches that have contributed to the making and unmaking of political fortunes of key political parties across geographies. This unprecedented power of platforms is, however, being challenged today. Data breaches, evidence of platform manipulations, platform complicities with state surveillance, and their monopolist behaviours and its consequences for competition and data privacy have become the basis for regulatory responses from governments throughout the world. National and regional courts of law have collected a lot of evidence on myriad forms of platform illegalities that discriminate against competitors and that point to the privatization of personal data on a global scale. The proposed volume provides an introduction to some of the issues and challenges related to platform regulation, the conundrums and paradoxes involved, and also to some of the well-conceived and manageable regulatory pathways currently being explored by national and regional governments. It highlights regulatory responses from four jurisdictions - the European Union, USA, India, and Australia.

Data centres are involved in the sorting, sifting, storage, aggregation, and monetization of transactional data critical to data capitalism. Tucked away in high-rise buildings or peri-urban areas, data centres are largely invisible and fundamentally resource-intensive, and deploy extractive, energy-intensive technologies. In the context of artificial intelligence, data centre energy consumption has skyrocketed. Data Centre Entanglements addresses external challenges, specifically, contemporary geopolitical struggles between China and the USA to become the world's data hegemon and supply chain issues related to critical minerals and semiconductors, as well as internal issues such as data centre sustainability, which is particularly acute in countries facing significant water and power stresses. Given their essential infrastructure status in many countries, data centres are immune to public scrutiny, leading to transparency and accountability issues. The special relationship that data centres--in particular, hyperscale data centres owned by Big Tech--have with the State is reflected in the migration of public data to privately-owned data centres. Thomas focuses on this relationship in the context of data localization, data sovereignty, risk, the politics of greening and renewable energy, and incentives such as access to subsidized land, tax breaks, and unrestricted labour supply. The book concludes with a discussion on the democratization of data centres and makes a case for diversity in data centre ownership, including community-based ownership.

The Gig Economy in India explores the topic of gig work in India’s digital political economy, and the relationship between key factors such as start-ups, state governments, and platform providers.The book begins by placing the gig economy in context, defining the platform ecosystem and the Indian government’s perception of its problems and opportunities. Thomas then examines the critical dimensions of the gig economy in India, from its data infrastructure capabilities, the enabling role of venture capitals and FinTech, to government regulations. Attention is paid to the precarity of gig labour, the vagaries of algorithmic management, and the minimal legal support available for workers. The book also includes chapters on labour resistance and highlights some of the issues related to the ethics of artificial intelligence.Given the limited research on India as a case study, this volume fills a crucial gap in the literature. It will interest scholars in diverse fields such as business management, digital media, and communication studies.

The Gig Economy in India explores the topic of gig work in India’s digital political economy, and the relationship between key factors such as start-ups, state governments, and platform providers.The book begins by placing the gig economy in context, defining the platform ecosystem and the Indian government’s perception of its problems and opportunities. Thomas then examines the critical dimensions of the gig economy in India, from its data infrastructure capabilities, the enabling role of venture capitals and FinTech, to government regulations. Attention is paid to the precarity of gig labour, the vagaries of algorithmic management, and the minimal legal support available for workers. The book also includes chapters on labour resistance and highlights some of the issues related to the ethics of artificial intelligence.Given the limited research on India as a case study, this volume fills a crucial gap in the literature. It will interest scholars in diverse fields such as business management, digital media, and communication studies.

A new addition to the Palgrave Studies in Communication for Social Change series, this book sets the stage for subsequent books by identifying and analysing the current gaps in the field. It critically reviews the theory, practice and strategies of Communication for Social Change in relation to occurring structures, policies and discourses.