Internet Policy: A Systematic Review of Approaches to Governance of Online and Social Media Platforms

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor at Department of Cyberspace Studies, Ricac

2 Associate Professor at Department of Sociology, University of Tehran

Abstract

Objective of the paper is to study theoretical literature of platforms governance and presentation and subject categorization based on different approach to platform governance. In the paper, one used systematic review and thematic analysis as method for analysis of platforms policy literature. Therefore, the researcher searched all major scientific databases for related papers using some keywords; and for 2010-2020. In sum, one identified and analyzed 106 papers. Three main categories were identified regarding platform governance policies: Governance on Platforms, Governance in Platforms and Governance through Platforms. The Finding showed that self-governance is so far the main tool for governance of Platforms, but despite of complexity and rapid developments of techno-cultural features of Platforms, different government are able to establish some policies-for example, co governane-to govern platforms and recognition of global platforms.

Keywords


1- حافظ‌نیا، محمدرضا (1394). جغرافیای سیاسی فضای مجازی، تهران: سمت.
2- سجادی، حمیرا و دیگران (1392). مرور سیستماتیک مطالعات مرتبط با افسردگی دوران بارداری در مطالعات ایرانی (1375-90)، مجله دانشگاه علوم پزشکی خراسان شمالی، تابستان 1392، 5 (2): 521-530.
3- فن دایک، یوزه (1396). فرهنگ اتصال: تاریخ انتقادی رسانه‌های اجتماعی، ترجمه حسین حسنی، تهران:               انتشارات سوره مهر. 
4- Bulut, E. (2016). Social media and the nation state: of revolution and collaboration, Media. Culture & Society. Vol. 38(4) 606–618
5- Chen, Y.; Pereira, I. & Patel, P. C. (2020). Decentralized Governance of Digital Platforms. Journal of Management, Forthcoming. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3553368
6- DeNardis, L., & Hackl, A. M. (2015). Internet governance by social media platforms. Telecommunications Policy. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2015.04.003i
7- Fenwick, M., McCahery, J. A., & Vermeulen, E. P. M. (2019). The End of ‘Corporate’ Governance: Hello ‘Platform’ Governance. European Business Organization Law Review (2019) 20:171–199. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40804-019-00137-z
8- Flew, T. (2015). Social Media Governance. Social Media + Society. April-June 2015: 1–2
9- Flew, T., Martin, F. and Suzor, N. (2019). Internet regulation as media policy: Rethinking the question of digital communication platform governance. Journal of Digital Media & Policy. 10:1, pp. 33–50, doi: 10.1386/jdmp.10.1.33_1
10- Galloway, S. (2107). The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google.New York: Portfolio/Penguin.
11- Gillespie, T. (2018a). Custodians of the Internet: Platforms, Content Moderation, and the Hidden Decisions That Shape Social Media, New Hawen & London: Yale University Press.
12- Gillespie, T. (2018b). Regulation of and by Platforms. in The Sage handbook of Social Media. edited by Jean Burgess, Alice Marwick & Thomas Poell. Los Angeles & London: Sage.
13- Gorwa, R. (2019). The platform governance triangle: Conceptualising the informal regulation
of online content. Internet Policy Review, 8(2). DOI: 10.14763/2019.2.1407
14- Gorwa, R. (2019). What is platform governance?. Information, Communication & Society. DOI: 10.1080/1369118X.2019.1573914
15- Gorwa, R.& Binns, R. and Katzenbach, Ch. (2020). Algorithmic content moderation:
16- Greene, D. & Shilton, K. (2018). Platform privacies: Governance, collaboration, and the different meanings of “privacy” in iOS and Android development. New Media & Society. Vol. 20(4) 1640–1657
17- Helberger, N., Pierson, J. & Poell, T. (2018). Governing online
platforms: From contested to cooperative responsibility. The Information Society. 34:1, 1-14, DOI:10.1080/01972243.2017.1391913
18- Jordan, T. (2020). Digital Economy. Cambrdge: Polity.
19- Just, N. (2018). Governing online platforms: Competition policy in times of
platformization. Telecommunications Policy (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2018.02.006
20- Kenney, M., & Zysman, J. (2016). The Rise of Platform Economy. Issues in Science and Technology. Spring 2016. https://www.nbp.pl/badania/seminaria/25x2016_2.pdf
21- Keping, Y. (2018). Governance and Good Governance: A New Framework for Political Analysis. Fudan Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences (2018) 11:1–8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40647-017-0197-4
22- Khan et al. (2003). Five steps to Conducting a Systematic Review. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 96(3): 118–121.
23- Klobnikov, S. (2012). Google Parent Alphabet Passes $1 Trillion in Market Value. Www. Forbes.com (date of access: 26 January 2020). https://www.forbes.com/sites/sergeiklebnikov/2020/01/13/google-parent-alphabet-set-to-hit-1-trillion-in-market-value/#1e039fe84dcf
24- Martin, C.J., Upham P., & Klapper, R. (2017). Democratising platform governance in the
sharing economy: An analytical framework and initial empirical insights. Journal of Cleaner Production (2017), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.08.123.
25- Mosco, V. (2017). Becoming Digital: Toward A Post-Internet Society. Bingley: Emerald Publishing.
26- OECD. (2019). An Introduction to Online Platforms and Their Role in the Digital Transformation. www.oecd.org. https://www.oecd.org/publications
27- Parker, G. G.; Van Alstyne, M. W., and Choudary, S. P. (2017). Platform Revolution: How Networked Markets Are Transforming the Economy and How to Make Them Work for You. London & New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
28- Pieter Nooren, P., Van Gorp, N., van Eijk, N. & Fathaigh, R. O. (2018). Whould We Regulate Digital Platforms?. A New Framework for Evaluating Policy Options. Policy & Internet. 10(3), 264–301. doi: 10.1002/poi3.177.
29- Schmeisse, J., Hoelzle1, K. and Tech, R. P. G. (2019). Designing Governance Mechanisms in Platform Ecosystems: Addressing the Paradox of Openness Through Blockchain Technology. California Management Review. Volume: 62 issue: 1, page(s): 121-143
30- Suzor, N. (2020). Constitutional Moment: How We Might Reimagine Platform Governance. Computer Law & Security Review. 36 (2020) 105381
31- Suzor, N.P. (2019). Lawless: Secret Rules that Govern Our Digital Lives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Technical and political challenges in the automation of platform governance. Big Data & Society.January–June: 1–15
32- Thomas, J., & Harden, A. (2008). Methods for The Thematic Synthesis of Gualitative Research in Systematic Review. BMC Medical Research Methodology. 8, (45) (2008). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-8-45
33- Tiwana, A., Konsynski, B. & Bush, A A. (2010). Research Commentary—Platform Evolution: Coevolution of Platform Architecture, Governance, and Environmental Dynamics. Information Systems Research 21(4):675-687. http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/isre.1100.0323
34- Van Dijck, J., Thomas, T. & De Waal, M. (2018). Platform Society. New York: Oxford University Press. 
2- Vieira, G. B. B.; Neto, F. J. K. & Amaral, F. G. (2014). Governance, Governance Models and Port Performance: A Systematic Review. Transport Reviews. 34:5, 645-662
3- Woodcock, J., & Graham, M., (2020). The Gig Economy: An Introduction. Cambridge: Polity Press.
37- Zwart, M.D. (2018). Keeping the neighbourhood safe: How does social media moderation control what we see (and think)?. Alternative Law Journal. Vol. 43(4) 283–288.