Sharing Economy

Abstract

While sharing is as old as civilization itself, the concept of a sharing economy has only emerged in the early 21st Century in response to a suite of drivers including the increasing sophistication and accessibility of “smart” digital technologies, such as Internet platforms, smartphones, apps, and other forms of information and communications technologies; a growing global awareness of the impacts of mainstream economic activity on the environment; concerns about increasing social anomie; and entrepreneurial responses to economic recession. A dynamic arena of activities is being identified under the banner of the sharing economy with a small number of high profiles sharing economy initiatives – particularly in the mobility and accommodation sectors—receiving considerable media attention and responses from governing actors as their activities begin to disrupt existing business models and modes of regulation. This, in turn, has led to growing scholarly examination among geographers of how activities corralled under the term sharing economy are practiced, where these practices take place and how they are being shaped across different contexts. It is clear that ongoing research will be required to map and monitor the trajectory of the sharing economy.