World cities under conditions of digitization and platform capitalism: Updating the advanced producer services complex

Bassens, David; Hendrikse, Reijer; Lai, Karen P.Y.; van Meeteren, Michiel

Abstract

This themed issue showcases contributions that study how processes of digitization and platformization are reshaping the intermediary role and operations of advanced producer services (APS). It places these alterations against the backdrop of earlier rounds of APS ‘shapeshifting’ amid globalization and financialization. This introduction to the themed issue outlines the main dimensions of these shifts affecting APS: geographical changes, sectoral and functional changes, organizational changes, and strategic-institutional changes. Reflecting on the themed issue contributions, we posit that digitization and platformization are rapidly altering APS as organizations, but there is little evidence for a wholesale loss of their intermediary function. In geographical terms, we observe that the platformization of APS is generating networked dependence of world cities on tech centres, further entangling APS intermediation with wider geopolitical concerns about technological sovereignty.

Citation

Bassens, D., Hendrikse, R., Lai, K. P., & van Meeteren, M. (2024). World cities under conditions of digitization and platform capitalism: Updating the advanced producer services complex. Geoforum, 152, Article 104021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2024.104021

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 30, 2024
• Online Publication Date: May 11, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-06
• Deposit Date: Jun 25, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 25, 2024
• Journal: Geoforum
• Print ISSN: 0016-7185
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 152
• Article Number: 104021
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2024.104021
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2500960