4 - The Rise of the Access Economy

Summary

This chapter presents the sharing economy phenomenon and studies its main characteristics. It argues that it is a diverse phenomenon with diverse normative implications. There is a tendency in legal academia to focus almost exclusively on Airbnb and Uber, and this tendency flattens the complexity of the phenomenon. The chapter maps the phenomenon based on an institutional analysis, focusing on who owns or controls the property or service. It identifies four main institutional categories: peer-to-peer markets that include both for-profit projects and nonprofit enterprises, commercial companies, communal projects, and governmental programs. The distinction among forms of access is important. Each category raises different legal and policy-oriented challenges. Each category also carries different normative value from the perspective of flexibility.