1 00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:03,920 Speaker 1: Zone media. 2 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:18,040 Speaker 2: Fix off look sharp, I'm edzetron, this is better offline. 3 00:00:20,040 --> 00:00:22,360 Speaker 2: In the last episode, I know, I know, we talked 4 00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:24,440 Speaker 2: about something I talk about all the time, the growing 5 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:26,479 Speaker 2: shittiness of tech, and now the media is kind of 6 00:00:26,480 --> 00:00:28,400 Speaker 2: playing into it. And the fact that all of this 7 00:00:28,440 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 2: is caused by the rock economy, which is the growth 8 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:34,920 Speaker 2: of all costs mindset that means everything must grow, revenue, engagement, 9 00:00:35,040 --> 00:00:38,640 Speaker 2: time on app everything at all costs, at all times. 10 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:41,680 Speaker 2: And how well the things you change to make growth happen. 11 00:00:42,479 --> 00:00:45,159 Speaker 2: They're pretty terrible, and they hit you everywhere, and they 12 00:00:45,240 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 2: hit you in a manifest ways and manifold ways and 13 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:51,480 Speaker 2: ways that just fill you full of little poisons every day. 14 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:54,640 Speaker 2: And it's these little things that are mostly overlooked, mostly 15 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:57,920 Speaker 2: by the media. See the modern tech clash narrative pushed 16 00:00:57,920 --> 00:01:00,400 Speaker 2: by the media hasn't been focused on anything other than 17 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:05,319 Speaker 2: big MEATI problems like METS Cambridge Analyticals scandal, while ignoring 18 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:07,880 Speaker 2: the gradual destruction of the products we use every day. 19 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:11,000 Speaker 2: In the space of a decade, Google made its ads 20 00:01:11,080 --> 00:01:14,080 Speaker 2: on search look near identical to regular search results, and 21 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:16,959 Speaker 2: only a few websites like search engine Land, for example, 22 00:01:17,319 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 2: seemed to take that and the other changes made to 23 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:22,200 Speaker 2: the algorithm of one of the single most important sources 24 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 2: of information in the world with any kind of seriousness. 25 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:27,920 Speaker 2: The fact that I, a part time blogger with a 26 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:30,520 Speaker 2: podcast that runs a PR firm during the day, was 27 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:32,759 Speaker 2: the one to on cover and discuss how the ads 28 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 2: team made Google Search worse for money nine months after 29 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:39,360 Speaker 2: the associated emails were made public. It's just a glaring 30 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:41,600 Speaker 2: example of the misalignment of the tech media with what 31 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 2: actually affects people on a daily basis. But let me 32 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,960 Speaker 2: give you another example. In Nvidia, one of the most 33 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,320 Speaker 2: single covered tech companies of the last year, has effectively 34 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:53,800 Speaker 2: lied about the launch of its RTX fifty eighty and 35 00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:57,240 Speaker 2: RTX fifty ninety graphics cards, doing something called a paper launch, 36 00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 2: where stores like Microcenter received as few as two hundred 37 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:05,120 Speaker 2: thirty three RTX fifty ninety graphics cards nationwide, while Nvidia 38 00:02:05,200 --> 00:02:08,320 Speaker 2: did warn of stock shortages. It's laughable to even call 39 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:10,240 Speaker 2: this a launch, and I'd argue that the tech media 40 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 2: as well basically no interest in covering it, despite this 41 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:17,160 Speaker 2: being a very very significant story about how in Nvidia 42 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,120 Speaker 2: is misleading people about its consumer and procemer graphics cards, 43 00:02:21,280 --> 00:02:23,000 Speaker 2: which by the way, make up billions of dollars of 44 00:02:23,040 --> 00:02:26,240 Speaker 2: revenue and a large percentage of it. And that and 45 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:28,200 Speaker 2: it does not appear to be able to deliver them 46 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,120 Speaker 2: on time or in any kind of value or volume. 47 00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:35,040 Speaker 2: These events hit millions of consumers in a tangible way. 48 00:02:35,600 --> 00:02:38,880 Speaker 2: In Vidia, despite all its financial success selling AI chips 49 00:02:38,919 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 2: to companies like Microsoft and Amazon, appears to be spurning 50 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:44,639 Speaker 2: one of its core customer bases, the one it built 51 00:02:44,639 --> 00:02:46,840 Speaker 2: its name on, by the way, and the response from 52 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:50,400 Speaker 2: the consumer tech media has been steppit. The Verge covered this, 53 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:52,280 Speaker 2: by the way, tom Hardware has done it like there 54 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:54,880 Speaker 2: are people covering it. And this is all despite the 55 00:02:54,880 --> 00:02:58,200 Speaker 2: fact that PC gaming revenue is comparable insights to console gaming. 56 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:00,840 Speaker 2: It's forty three point two billion in two four compared 57 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:03,160 Speaker 2: to the fifty one point nine billion dollars the console 58 00:03:03,160 --> 00:03:05,600 Speaker 2: gaming brought in, and according to research from new Zoo 59 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:07,360 Speaker 2: and PC gaming, by the way, is one of the 60 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:09,519 Speaker 2: only things that's growing right now. It's growing four percent 61 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:11,639 Speaker 2: year of a year, compared to a one percent contraction 62 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:16,040 Speaker 2: in console revenue. This shit's really important. But things are worse. 63 00:03:16,160 --> 00:03:18,880 Speaker 2: Things are worse than I'm even saying in Vidius fifty 64 00:03:18,919 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 2: eighty graphics cards, well they kind of suck, and they 65 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:24,240 Speaker 2: represent how in Video is treating PC gamers in twenty 66 00:03:24,240 --> 00:03:27,880 Speaker 2: twenty five. According to Paul's Hardware, a fantastic YouTube channel, 67 00:03:28,080 --> 00:03:30,800 Speaker 2: and they skewered in video for slowly reducing the amount 68 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:33,280 Speaker 2: of performance gains you'll get out of mid range graphics 69 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 2: cards like the fifty eighty and the previous generation. And 70 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 2: this is a cynical attempt to make it so that 71 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:41,280 Speaker 2: anyone looking for a real upgrade to their graphics card 72 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:43,320 Speaker 2: has to spend upwards of two thousand dollars and a 73 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:48,040 Speaker 2: fifty ninety A can't that they can't find. And there's more, 74 00:03:48,120 --> 00:03:49,920 Speaker 2: by the way, And I can't really speak to this 75 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 2: fully as I'm not super into the hardware spaceball. I'll 76 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:55,720 Speaker 2: include a YouTube right now. There is a massive scandal 77 00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:59,800 Speaker 2: going on that Technedia really isn't jumping on. In Vidos 78 00:03:59,800 --> 00:04:03,120 Speaker 2: few fifty ninety graphics cards may have been poorly load balanced. 79 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:06,240 Speaker 2: Sounds technical right. It means all the powers going into 80 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,800 Speaker 2: like two wires and literally melting cards. This may lead 81 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:13,480 Speaker 2: to a recall. This is significant. I don't see anything 82 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:16,599 Speaker 2: on the new York Times about it. Guess guess something 83 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:20,480 Speaker 2: else is happening. I guess they're busy. But anyway, this 84 00:04:20,520 --> 00:04:23,680 Speaker 2: is significant. This is really significant. This is like Apple 85 00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:26,320 Speaker 2: slowly over the course of years reducing the efficiency and 86 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:29,240 Speaker 2: performance of the regular iPhone in the hopes of deucing 87 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:33,120 Speaker 2: sales of the iPhone Pro. Yet the only people that 88 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 2: are taking stories like these seriously appear to be video 89 00:04:35,680 --> 00:04:38,239 Speaker 2: creators like Paul's Hardware who I've mentioned, and Game is Nexus. 90 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 2: Stephen Burke, the fucking legend. Stephen, come on my show please. 91 00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 2: If you know Stephen, email me at my web zone, 92 00:04:43,800 --> 00:04:46,359 Speaker 2: easy at Better offline dot com. There's e Z at 93 00:04:46,400 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 2: Better Offline dot com. Please Stephen. By the way, these 94 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 2: these are not small channels. One point five million subscribers 95 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:56,560 Speaker 2: on Paul's Hardware, two point four million on Game is Nexus, 96 00:04:56,760 --> 00:05:00,240 Speaker 2: and time and time again. These guys, specifically, they can 97 00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:03,160 Speaker 2: on real stories that affect real consumers, like gaming PC 98 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:07,200 Speaker 2: builder NZXT creating a PC rental program that actively conned 99 00:05:07,240 --> 00:05:10,440 Speaker 2: consumers with rates worse than a payday loan company. And 100 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:13,960 Speaker 2: they act like Stephen and Paul. They protect consumers from 101 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:16,640 Speaker 2: active harm as the mainstream media chases their tales about 102 00:05:16,640 --> 00:05:19,680 Speaker 2: whatever half broken bullshit Sam Moultman has farted out on 103 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:23,040 Speaker 2: their heads in video, a company discussed by what it 104 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:25,920 Speaker 2: feels like every single business and tech out there has 105 00:05:25,960 --> 00:05:30,080 Speaker 2: a documented pattern of misleading and shortchanging customers. Why is 106 00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 2: this not everywhere? Huh? It's almost as if the only 107 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:36,039 Speaker 2: reason that anyone's talking about in video is that there's 108 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,640 Speaker 2: a herd mentality in what stories are important to the 109 00:05:38,680 --> 00:05:41,320 Speaker 2: modern media, rather than any kind of relationship to the 110 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:44,960 Speaker 2: effects that these companies might have on actual customers. The 111 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:48,159 Speaker 2: mainstream media, especially when it comes to technology, does not 112 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:52,279 Speaker 2: seem capable or willing to discuss the real, tangible, obvious 113 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:55,679 Speaker 2: problems with the modern tech ecosystem, instead choosing to attack 114 00:05:55,760 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 2: things piecemeal or blandly, reporting news with as little context 115 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:03,320 Speaker 2: as necessary, how with as many company quotes as possible. Look, 116 00:06:04,000 --> 00:06:05,960 Speaker 2: people are pissed off at the tech industry because the 117 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:08,919 Speaker 2: tech industry is actively pissing them off. They are getting 118 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:11,039 Speaker 2: less value from the products they pay for, and they're 119 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:13,000 Speaker 2: paying more for them too, and they're aware that the 120 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 2: free products they use are getting worse as a means 121 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:18,680 Speaker 2: of making them more profitable. Stories about distrust and big 122 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:22,680 Speaker 2: tech continually failed to talk about the simplest, most obvious problems. 123 00:06:23,040 --> 00:06:27,440 Speaker 2: Facebook sucks, Instagram sucks, Our apps suck, Microsoft teams sucks, 124 00:06:27,520 --> 00:06:32,040 Speaker 2: Zoom sucks, Google Meet sucks. It sucks. They suck. They're 125 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:35,040 Speaker 2: all like, I'm not even being polemic here, these are 126 00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:41,000 Speaker 2: factual statements. These products are worse. They are worse. Everything 127 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 2: feels like it's built to subtly fuck with us. And 128 00:06:43,400 --> 00:06:46,200 Speaker 2: this is a problem that affects billions of people, one 129 00:06:46,240 --> 00:06:49,640 Speaker 2: that's discussed so rarely that I am considered creative for 130 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:52,520 Speaker 2: writing a thousand words about the literal experience of using 131 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:55,200 Speaker 2: a shitty laptop, as I did in my newsletter. Never 132 00:06:55,240 --> 00:06:57,680 Speaker 2: forgive them, which are turned into the invisible war criminals. 133 00:06:58,120 --> 00:07:00,680 Speaker 2: You know how the process goes, Folks more fun when 134 00:07:00,680 --> 00:07:04,880 Speaker 2: I read it. Anyway, these problems are everywhere. They're everywhere, 135 00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:08,320 Speaker 2: and they're real, meaningful stories, ones that are more important 136 00:07:08,320 --> 00:07:12,400 Speaker 2: than Dario amideo anthropic farting into a microphone about how 137 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:15,560 Speaker 2: in maybe two years AI will be smarter than humans. 138 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:19,239 Speaker 2: These fucking assholes just go on bloviate, and the media 139 00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:22,680 Speaker 2: lines up like fucking idiots to go, Oh, mister Amiday, 140 00:07:22,720 --> 00:07:25,920 Speaker 2: tell me how smart you are? Fuck you. I'm referring 141 00:07:25,920 --> 00:07:27,800 Speaker 2: to AMIDE. I'm not telling the tech need to go 142 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:33,400 Speaker 2: fuck themselves. Regular people are not really, in my opinion 143 00:07:33,440 --> 00:07:35,400 Speaker 2: from my experience from talking to people, not pissed off 144 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:39,040 Speaker 2: a big tech for any complex or multifaceted series of 145 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:42,800 Speaker 2: events that made them pissed off. The shit they pay 146 00:07:42,840 --> 00:07:45,640 Speaker 2: for sucks. The shit they use sucks. The shit they 147 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:47,960 Speaker 2: trade their data for sucks. The products are broken or 148 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:50,720 Speaker 2: in the process of actively breaking. And when consumers look 149 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:54,400 Speaker 2: at to these companies, they're told, yeah, well, what if 150 00:07:54,440 --> 00:07:56,840 Speaker 2: you had some generative AI. What do you think? Do 151 00:07:56,880 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 2: you like it? What do you think? 152 00:07:58,760 --> 00:07:59,040 Speaker 3: M M? 153 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:01,360 Speaker 2: And the customer is like, I fucking hate that? Can 154 00:08:01,400 --> 00:08:04,560 Speaker 2: I take it off? And they go no, But let 155 00:08:04,600 --> 00:08:07,400 Speaker 2: me give you another example, and this one for my listeners. 156 00:08:07,400 --> 00:08:10,080 Speaker 2: By the real Edhead's going back to the beginning. You're 157 00:08:10,120 --> 00:08:13,840 Speaker 2: finally getting it. I'm finally going in on fucking Apple. 158 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:18,200 Speaker 2: The app store is a complete mess. On loading it up. 159 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:20,840 Speaker 2: The first ad I received is for truth Social, you know, 160 00:08:20,920 --> 00:08:24,559 Speaker 2: the Donald Trumps social network, followed by popular iPhone apps 161 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:27,520 Speaker 2: including Bumble, which is a micro transaction heavy dating app, 162 00:08:27,680 --> 00:08:31,640 Speaker 2: Paramount plus Zoom Max that's HBO Max I don't know, 163 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:35,160 Speaker 2: Amazon Prime Video, and of course Tinder, another micro transaction 164 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:39,040 Speaker 2: heavy dating app, followed by another micro transaction heavy mobile 165 00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:42,320 Speaker 2: gaming app, madd in NFL twenty five Mobile football, followed 166 00:08:42,320 --> 00:08:46,440 Speaker 2: by another micro transaction heavy mobile game, Clash of Clans, 167 00:08:46,600 --> 00:08:51,080 Speaker 2: followed by another micro transaction game, Artro, followed by helpful 168 00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 2: apps for every day, which included Strava, a fitness at 169 00:08:53,559 --> 00:08:55,840 Speaker 2: that I use, letter Bogs, the social network for people 170 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:59,280 Speaker 2: to review movies, StoryGraph and app for tracking books you've read, 171 00:08:59,320 --> 00:09:01,840 Speaker 2: Peanut and from others to connect with each other. And 172 00:09:01,880 --> 00:09:05,120 Speaker 2: then some sort of app for discovering irl plans near 173 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:07,080 Speaker 2: you called Pie and part of Ale, and app for 174 00:09:07,120 --> 00:09:09,880 Speaker 2: planning parties, immediately followed by an ad for Apple's own 175 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:12,880 Speaker 2: party and by app that specifically competes with them. It'd 176 00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:16,240 Speaker 2: be so cool if we had antitrust now. The next 177 00:09:16,240 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 2: carousel is for ten great dating apps, the first of 178 00:09:18,679 --> 00:09:20,560 Speaker 2: which is okay Cupid, a dating app with a one 179 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:23,160 Speaker 2: out of five star rating on trust Pilot, but the 180 00:09:23,160 --> 00:09:25,840 Speaker 2: first review is saying that and I quote, everything is 181 00:09:25,840 --> 00:09:28,439 Speaker 2: designed to force you into paying, and even when you do, 182 00:09:28,480 --> 00:09:31,520 Speaker 2: you quickly realize it's not worth it. Okay Cupid is 183 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:33,760 Speaker 2: owned by the publicly traded Match Group, which owns three 184 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:35,760 Speaker 2: of the other apps on the list, Hinge, Tinder, and 185 00:09:35,800 --> 00:09:39,400 Speaker 2: plenty of Fish. And the reason I'm agonizingly breaking down 186 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:41,559 Speaker 2: these problems is because that I believe the problems of 187 00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 2: the modern tech industry are far simpler and far more 188 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:58,000 Speaker 2: pervasive than the media will face. Apple's App Store, a 189 00:09:58,040 --> 00:10:01,480 Speaker 2: trillion dollar marketplace where Apple take thirty percent of almost 190 00:10:01,640 --> 00:10:05,719 Speaker 2: every buck of developer makes, actively promotes and profits off 191 00:10:05,760 --> 00:10:08,760 Speaker 2: of exploitative free to play mobile games that academics believe 192 00:10:08,840 --> 00:10:11,800 Speaker 2: rob consumers of their right to self determination, And an 193 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:14,800 Speaker 2: online dating industry that has adopted these very same ideas 194 00:10:14,800 --> 00:10:16,840 Speaker 2: to turn romance into its own kind of free to 195 00:10:16,840 --> 00:10:19,839 Speaker 2: play a game. I'm saying ale. By the way, my 196 00:10:20,040 --> 00:10:23,760 Speaker 2: single friends all experience this. These apps are insane. These 197 00:10:23,800 --> 00:10:27,520 Speaker 2: apps are completely bonkers. They are asking you for money constantly. 198 00:10:27,679 --> 00:10:32,280 Speaker 2: They very clearly hide the best matches behind pay wars. 199 00:10:32,679 --> 00:10:35,400 Speaker 2: This is what online dating is now. It's a fucking 200 00:10:35,520 --> 00:10:39,840 Speaker 2: gatcha game. It's a slot machine. It's a mess. It's 201 00:10:40,000 --> 00:10:43,760 Speaker 2: absolutely abominable. And you know who makes a shit ton 202 00:10:43,800 --> 00:10:48,360 Speaker 2: of money off of that abominability. Mister Timothy Cook of Apple. 203 00:10:48,920 --> 00:10:52,040 Speaker 2: The App Store largely promotes apps and their associated features 204 00:10:52,040 --> 00:10:54,680 Speaker 2: from public companies with billions or trillions of dollars in 205 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:58,160 Speaker 2: market capitalization, and much like Google Search, only functions to 206 00:10:58,200 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 2: bring you results that are convenient Apple and they no 207 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:05,640 Speaker 2: longer highlight apps based on anything other than shadowy partnerships 208 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:08,440 Speaker 2: and profit incentives. No, I do not believe the App 209 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:11,640 Speaker 2: Store editorial group is going, huh, what if we advertise 210 00:11:11,679 --> 00:11:14,400 Speaker 2: the literal apps that everyone has, the apps that people 211 00:11:14,480 --> 00:11:16,640 Speaker 2: know about already, or maybe they just want more micro 212 00:11:16,720 --> 00:11:19,440 Speaker 2: transaction revenue. It's that it's so obvious, and this is 213 00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:21,360 Speaker 2: the way that tens, if not hundreds of millions of 214 00:11:21,360 --> 00:11:24,600 Speaker 2: people are introduced to software, and the software they're introduced 215 00:11:24,640 --> 00:11:28,160 Speaker 2: to is inherently exploitative. It's like if every Kroger store 216 00:11:28,160 --> 00:11:30,160 Speaker 2: sold bread that costs an extra three dollars, if you 217 00:11:30,200 --> 00:11:32,840 Speaker 2: wanted to cut it into slices, or bacon that required 218 00:11:32,880 --> 00:11:35,160 Speaker 2: you to subscribe to Bacon Plus, if you kept it 219 00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:37,600 Speaker 2: in the fridge for longer than two days. I'm not 220 00:11:37,760 --> 00:11:40,320 Speaker 2: even being facetious. This is the actual scale of the 221 00:11:40,360 --> 00:11:43,240 Speaker 2: harms being done against actual consumers by a company with 222 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 2: a market capitalization of three point five trillion dollars. When 223 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:49,560 Speaker 2: somebody buys a new iPhone, they're not thinking like me 224 00:11:49,800 --> 00:11:52,120 Speaker 2: or you or someone else deeply aware of the incentives 225 00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:55,720 Speaker 2: behind these companies. They blindly, because nobody really explains this 226 00:11:55,800 --> 00:11:58,600 Speaker 2: year or takes it seriously in the media, download whatever 227 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:02,200 Speaker 2: apps they see promoted by Apple. Consumers trust Apple, and 228 00:12:02,240 --> 00:12:05,079 Speaker 2: as a result, trust the companies that Apple chooses to promote, 229 00:12:05,160 --> 00:12:08,640 Speaker 2: at which point whatever malevolent mechanisms these companies use are 230 00:12:08,679 --> 00:12:11,920 Speaker 2: more effective because consumers believe that Apple, a company with 231 00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:16,040 Speaker 2: a multi trillion dollar market cap, wouldn't allow nakedly explodedive 232 00:12:16,080 --> 00:12:19,480 Speaker 2: apps on their phones. Except they do. They don't just 233 00:12:19,559 --> 00:12:22,280 Speaker 2: let them in. They give them a comfy fucking chair 234 00:12:22,679 --> 00:12:25,400 Speaker 2: to beat the shit out of your wallet. Apple could 235 00:12:25,480 --> 00:12:28,480 Speaker 2: very easily use its unilateral control over the entire app 236 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:30,839 Speaker 2: store to prevent these companies from existing, or at least 237 00:12:30,880 --> 00:12:33,560 Speaker 2: choose not to promote them. Instead, they choose to both 238 00:12:33,640 --> 00:12:36,120 Speaker 2: ensure and profit from their success by putting them in 239 00:12:36,120 --> 00:12:39,200 Speaker 2: front of millions and millions of consumers every day. And 240 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:43,000 Speaker 2: I want to be explicit here. Apple could just not 241 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,640 Speaker 2: accept dating apps they use microtransactions. They could say, hey, 242 00:12:46,840 --> 00:12:49,800 Speaker 2: this seems like it's just fucking with consumers. They could 243 00:12:49,840 --> 00:12:52,840 Speaker 2: do the same with these mobile games that use manipulative 244 00:12:52,880 --> 00:12:57,440 Speaker 2: psychological tricks to make you do these things, and it's ridiculous. 245 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:02,559 Speaker 2: It's ridiculous because they it's not that they just allow it. 246 00:13:02,559 --> 00:13:05,200 Speaker 2: It's not like this is just a we're being a galitarian. 247 00:13:05,280 --> 00:13:07,240 Speaker 2: We let these companies in. We let everyone in, and 248 00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:10,079 Speaker 2: as long as they apply to our standards. Also what standards, 249 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:14,200 Speaker 2: that's fine. They're like, yeah, baby, it's it's Apple time. 250 00:13:14,520 --> 00:13:16,240 Speaker 2: Join the Apple wagon. You want to be on the 251 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:19,080 Speaker 2: front of the app store. Fuck, yeah, I hope you 252 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:22,960 Speaker 2: scam someone give us that thirty percent. Baby. While micro 253 00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:26,839 Speaker 2: transactions aren't inherently evil when I'm restrained, they naturally lead 254 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:31,000 Speaker 2: to evil outcomes. As I've repeatedly said, modern dating apps 255 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:34,280 Speaker 2: effectively require users to buy both a monthly subscription and 256 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:37,200 Speaker 2: piecemeal items that make your message your profile more prominent 257 00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:41,360 Speaker 2: in an app dominated by spam profiles. Mobile gaming, an 258 00:13:41,360 --> 00:13:44,840 Speaker 2: industry that makes tens of billions of dollars of yearly revenue, 259 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:47,520 Speaker 2: has become dominated by free to play games that require 260 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:50,880 Speaker 2: you to spend money to progress, using deceptive psychological techniques 261 00:13:50,920 --> 00:13:53,120 Speaker 2: to push users into spending money in small amounts that 262 00:13:53,240 --> 00:13:55,320 Speaker 2: naturally add up to much more than a triple a 263 00:13:55,360 --> 00:13:58,440 Speaker 2: gaming title and a console or a computer. I hammer 264 00:13:58,520 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 2: so hard and repetitively on because they make up the 265 00:14:01,160 --> 00:14:05,200 Speaker 2: majority of the promoted content on Apple's app store. Good Lord, 266 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:11,200 Speaker 2: good fucking lord. We would scream if a city was 267 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:15,079 Speaker 2: dominated by people just selling drugs at every corner, if 268 00:14:15,120 --> 00:14:19,320 Speaker 2: our streets were unsafe. Even if they're not unsafe, Republicans 269 00:14:19,360 --> 00:14:21,240 Speaker 2: still go on TV and talk about harn's safe. They 270 00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:24,280 Speaker 2: are somehow this is okay. Though, somehow this is okay, 271 00:14:24,320 --> 00:14:28,320 Speaker 2: despite this being a direct portal into people's lives and 272 00:14:28,440 --> 00:14:32,120 Speaker 2: into people's wallets. It's just disgusting. It pisses me off. 273 00:14:32,400 --> 00:14:35,520 Speaker 2: And as I've said, to be abundantly clear, Apple had 274 00:14:35,560 --> 00:14:38,160 Speaker 2: and has the power to kill any of these industries 275 00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:41,040 Speaker 2: are at the very least limit their harms. Apple controls 276 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:43,360 Speaker 2: every single thing that goes on the app Store, and 277 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:47,240 Speaker 2: could very easily make dark patterns that manipulate consumers, which 278 00:14:47,280 --> 00:14:49,720 Speaker 2: are by the way, in the majority of subscription apps. 279 00:14:49,760 --> 00:14:51,920 Speaker 2: You can just make them against the rules and harshly 280 00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:55,320 Speaker 2: penalize the apps that use microtransactions. Apple could do this tomorrow. 281 00:14:55,400 --> 00:14:58,520 Speaker 2: They could do it today. Apple could easily take a 282 00:14:58,520 --> 00:15:02,320 Speaker 2: stand against these companies. The combined micro transactions with loop boxes, 283 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:04,320 Speaker 2: which are essentially in game content that you don't know 284 00:15:04,320 --> 00:15:06,080 Speaker 2: what you're buying ahead of time. You hit bun, money 285 00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:09,400 Speaker 2: goes in, thing pops out. They could get rid of that. 286 00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:11,000 Speaker 2: And by the way, this is a way of introducing 287 00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:14,560 Speaker 2: kids to gambling. What do you think these kids go 288 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:16,960 Speaker 2: and use games like Fortnite and they just fucking Fortnite 289 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:20,240 Speaker 2: have loop boxes. I'm one hundred years old. Nevertheless, Robox 290 00:15:20,440 --> 00:15:24,359 Speaker 2: another title on there principally aimed at children with micro transactions. 291 00:15:24,640 --> 00:15:27,040 Speaker 2: All of this is great. It's so good. I love 292 00:15:27,120 --> 00:15:29,800 Speaker 2: watching this. This makes me happy. And one could argue 293 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:33,040 Speaker 2: that it's the companies themselves, not Apple, choosing to make 294 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:36,840 Speaker 2: these decisions. But at the scale at which Apple operates, 295 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:40,080 Speaker 2: they're effectively a kind of government, and any government regulation 296 00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:42,480 Speaker 2: controls the kinds of products and services that can be 297 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:46,160 Speaker 2: offered to a consumer. But Apple's app store isn't like 298 00:15:46,520 --> 00:15:49,240 Speaker 2: a regular government or a democracy. It's a kleptocracy where 299 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:51,440 Speaker 2: sleazy companies like the Match Group who as I mentioned, 300 00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:53,960 Speaker 2: they own Hinge, tinder match dot Com and OkCupid and 301 00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:57,520 Speaker 2: Supercell who makes clash of plans they can make Apple 302 00:15:57,560 --> 00:15:59,640 Speaker 2: billions of dollars in app store fees by tricking and 303 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:04,440 Speaker 2: hurting consumers. Apple, through sheer scale, dictates exactly how the 304 00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:08,360 Speaker 2: economics of apps and consumer purchasing at large, to an extent, operate, 305 00:16:08,760 --> 00:16:12,920 Speaker 2: and it's their decisions that have allowed these poisonous flowers 306 00:16:12,960 --> 00:16:16,040 Speaker 2: to bloom. This, i'd argue is one of the largest 307 00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:20,320 Speaker 2: scale consumer harms in existence. There are hundreds of millions 308 00:16:20,320 --> 00:16:23,400 Speaker 2: of people with iOS devices, and Apple has perpetuated and 309 00:16:23,400 --> 00:16:27,480 Speaker 2: profited off of economics that are actively harmful, manipulative, and cruel, 310 00:16:27,560 --> 00:16:30,760 Speaker 2: and will continue to do so unless meaningful regulation or 311 00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:34,800 Speaker 2: media pressure makes them do otherwise. The latter would require 312 00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:38,080 Speaker 2: the media to actually discuss this problem. I can find 313 00:16:38,080 --> 00:16:41,240 Speaker 2: no major media outlet that's run anything even close to 314 00:16:41,280 --> 00:16:43,800 Speaker 2: an evaluation of the state of the modern app store, 315 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:46,600 Speaker 2: Nor can I find any condemnation of the very obvious 316 00:16:46,600 --> 00:16:49,360 Speaker 2: harms perpetuated by Apple or Google with their app stores, 317 00:16:49,480 --> 00:16:52,160 Speaker 2: outside of the lawsuit between Epic and Apple, which hasn't 318 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,280 Speaker 2: so much been about the harms themselves, but the extent 319 00:16:55,320 --> 00:16:57,560 Speaker 2: to which Apple has profited off of them, and stopped 320 00:16:57,560 --> 00:17:02,080 Speaker 2: other people from profiting themselves. Similarly, there's little coverage of 321 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:04,800 Speaker 2: the destruction of Google Search or the horrifying state of 322 00:17:04,840 --> 00:17:08,439 Speaker 2: Instagram and Facebook. While outlets have had dalliances and little 323 00:17:08,520 --> 00:17:10,879 Speaker 2: flirtations with the collapse of Search, Charlie wallzer that the 324 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:14,160 Speaker 2: Atlantic was earlier than most myself included. These are usually 325 00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:17,000 Speaker 2: one and dumb features, the momentary hmm in the slop 326 00:17:17,040 --> 00:17:20,280 Speaker 2: of breaking news and hot takes. If these stories even 327 00:17:20,320 --> 00:17:22,840 Speaker 2: happen at all, you might argue that one could not 328 00:17:23,080 --> 00:17:25,760 Speaker 2: simply write these stories again and again, to which I say, 329 00:17:25,920 --> 00:17:28,880 Speaker 2: skill issue the destruction of the products at the core 330 00:17:28,960 --> 00:17:32,680 Speaker 2: of society, the fabric of society. It's real important. It 331 00:17:32,720 --> 00:17:35,480 Speaker 2: should be in the news constantly. And like I said, 332 00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:39,639 Speaker 2: they talk about crime all the time in modern metropolitan areas. 333 00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:43,920 Speaker 2: This is a crime. It's not illegal, but I consider 334 00:17:44,040 --> 00:17:46,840 Speaker 2: it criminal in the zytron justice system. I will now 335 00:17:46,880 --> 00:17:49,280 Speaker 2: be building and please on the Reddit let me know 336 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:52,040 Speaker 2: other things that need to be in the zitron justice system. 337 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:54,720 Speaker 2: Companies like Google, Meta and Apple have been allowed to 338 00:17:54,760 --> 00:17:57,000 Speaker 2: expand their wealth and influence to the point that they're 339 00:17:57,040 --> 00:18:00,399 Speaker 2: effectively nation states, and I believe they should be ported 340 00:18:00,440 --> 00:18:03,880 Speaker 2: on As such, the manifold ways in which Mark Zuckerberger's 341 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,720 Speaker 2: manipulated Facebook's users as a means to express growth to 342 00:18:06,760 --> 00:18:11,800 Speaker 2: the public markets is a perpetual act of abuse, globally perpetuated. 343 00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:15,320 Speaker 2: Yet it remains relatively undiscussed because the media refuses to 344 00:18:15,320 --> 00:18:18,359 Speaker 2: discuss technology in a way that actually affects people. The 345 00:18:18,400 --> 00:18:20,760 Speaker 2: same ghost for Apples app store, and the same ghost 346 00:18:20,800 --> 00:18:22,960 Speaker 2: of a Google search and shit, I'd argue most of 347 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:25,320 Speaker 2: them onder the internet? How is it not a bigger 348 00:18:25,400 --> 00:18:28,840 Speaker 2: story that the mobile browsing experience on most websites ranges 349 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:32,640 Speaker 2: from awful to impossible to use because your browser crashed. 350 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:36,000 Speaker 2: And I think this is the thing that really confuses me. 351 00:18:36,080 --> 00:18:39,040 Speaker 2: How the fuck is this not being written about? You 352 00:18:39,080 --> 00:18:42,040 Speaker 2: see it any time you use your phone. It's everywhere, always, 353 00:18:42,080 --> 00:18:44,600 Speaker 2: all the time. There's so many examples, Yet tech coverage 354 00:18:44,640 --> 00:18:47,000 Speaker 2: is always about news or how to do something on 355 00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 2: your computer or phone that isn't obvious without any acknowledgment 356 00:18:50,080 --> 00:18:52,280 Speaker 2: that the reason that that piece has to exist, The 357 00:18:52,320 --> 00:18:55,560 Speaker 2: reason that something isn't obvious is because user interface design 358 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:58,520 Speaker 2: is terrible. They don't care anymore. And also, you want 359 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:01,560 Speaker 2: your website to rank high on Google Search, And I'd 360 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:04,520 Speaker 2: argue that regular people are experiencing these pains at scale, 361 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:07,000 Speaker 2: and they're so frustrated because they know, beneath the layers 362 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:10,800 Speaker 2: of abstraction, of worrying incentives and abusive you why choices, 363 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:14,080 Speaker 2: there's something they want or something they need. And I'm 364 00:19:14,119 --> 00:19:16,719 Speaker 2: not just angry at Mark Zuckerberg for turning Facebook into 365 00:19:16,760 --> 00:19:19,600 Speaker 2: an actively harmful product. I'm angry that he's done so 366 00:19:19,680 --> 00:19:21,520 Speaker 2: in a way that took away something that made the 367 00:19:21,520 --> 00:19:24,480 Speaker 2: Internet magical in the same way, and I despise Probagar 368 00:19:24,600 --> 00:19:26,640 Speaker 2: Ragavan and suned up a Shai for doing the same 369 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:29,520 Speaker 2: with Google Search. And I'm not just angry at one 370 00:19:29,560 --> 00:19:32,440 Speaker 2: of the many different quarter page sized ads that block 371 00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:34,760 Speaker 2: an article I want to read. I'm angry that one 372 00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:37,119 Speaker 2: of the coolest things on the Internet, access to very 373 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,439 Speaker 2: media sources on the toilet, is literally obfuscated by the 374 00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:57,399 Speaker 2: demands of growth. The Internet allows us to do so 375 00:19:57,520 --> 00:19:59,359 Speaker 2: many things, and what we see today is both a 376 00:19:59,359 --> 00:20:03,200 Speaker 2: technological marvel and a disgrace to humanity. We right now 377 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:05,680 Speaker 2: have the ability to talk to somebody thousands of miles away, 378 00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:07,560 Speaker 2: to send them a photo of a video of what 379 00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:10,000 Speaker 2: we're doing, to meet people we'd never meet in real 380 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:14,040 Speaker 2: life and build meaningful relationships with them. As a creator, 381 00:20:14,080 --> 00:20:16,359 Speaker 2: a writer, whatever hell you call me, I'm able to 382 00:20:16,359 --> 00:20:19,040 Speaker 2: shoot the shit with my buddy Casey and Socow or 383 00:20:19,080 --> 00:20:22,600 Speaker 2: my editor Matt Hughes in Liverpool, and I'm able to 384 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:24,840 Speaker 2: do so about the same speed and as a result, 385 00:20:24,920 --> 00:20:27,480 Speaker 2: right thousands of words of ideas and perform these long 386 00:20:27,520 --> 00:20:31,840 Speaker 2: podcasts where I get extremely mad that well Matt Asowski 387 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:34,399 Speaker 2: or Matt Hughes ends up editing all with a few clicks, 388 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:37,120 Speaker 2: and I can distribute my newsletter to fifty five thousand 389 00:20:37,119 --> 00:20:39,879 Speaker 2: people and the podcast to a number larger or smaller 390 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:42,359 Speaker 2: that I can't say than that it's kind of cool. 391 00:20:42,600 --> 00:20:44,120 Speaker 2: I can go on Boo Sky and shoot the shit 392 00:20:44,119 --> 00:20:45,720 Speaker 2: with people I know well or who I've just met 393 00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:47,359 Speaker 2: or never met in my life and have a blast 394 00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:49,199 Speaker 2: doing so. I can sit in my living room and 395 00:20:49,200 --> 00:20:51,080 Speaker 2: play a video game while I stream music to my 396 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:53,159 Speaker 2: phone from my phone to a big speaker and a 397 00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:55,200 Speaker 2: few taps, and this technology has become more and more 398 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:59,080 Speaker 2: accessible as the years have gone on. It's really cool, 399 00:20:59,359 --> 00:21:01,679 Speaker 2: and we live in a time where technology does really 400 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:04,800 Speaker 2: really cool things that help billions of people these companies 401 00:21:04,920 --> 00:21:08,679 Speaker 2: can innovate, and they can make our lives better. The 402 00:21:08,800 --> 00:21:11,760 Speaker 2: problem is that software may have actually eaten the world, 403 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:16,080 Speaker 2: and growth hold software's leash. The rot economy sits above 404 00:21:16,119 --> 00:21:19,119 Speaker 2: all things. It's not enough for Apple to make iterations 405 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:21,560 Speaker 2: of the iPhone that are better and faster. It must 406 00:21:21,560 --> 00:21:24,080 Speaker 2: sell more of them every quarter, and the software sitting 407 00:21:24,080 --> 00:21:27,520 Speaker 2: in those iPhones must continue to generate monthly or quarterly 408 00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:32,439 Speaker 2: revenue or annual revenue imperpetuity. The websites you read that 409 00:21:32,480 --> 00:21:34,919 Speaker 2: have page wide ads, they're all run by people that 410 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:38,040 Speaker 2: don't read anything and must see revenue numbers increase. And 411 00:21:38,080 --> 00:21:40,960 Speaker 2: they're doing so because they're looking for startup metrics in media, 412 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:44,080 Speaker 2: which has never ever worked. And that's the same way 413 00:21:44,119 --> 00:21:46,760 Speaker 2: that the Match group must always find new ways to 414 00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:49,520 Speaker 2: increase quarterly revenues for their dating apps, even if they 415 00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:52,080 Speaker 2: way they do so is to make them cost more 416 00:21:52,160 --> 00:21:54,760 Speaker 2: money to connect with people and to officscate the connections 417 00:21:54,800 --> 00:21:57,800 Speaker 2: that we log on to find. Each of these ideas 418 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:00,240 Speaker 2: a miniature little computer that sits in our and it 419 00:22:00,359 --> 00:22:02,400 Speaker 2: gives us access to the world's information, or an app 420 00:22:02,400 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 2: for falling in love. They're extremely cool, Yet the reckless 421 00:22:05,080 --> 00:22:08,240 Speaker 2: incentives of the rot economy and growth of poison them. 422 00:22:08,440 --> 00:22:11,280 Speaker 2: And like I've said, I don't hate this stuff. I 423 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:14,320 Speaker 2: love it. I'm a broken hearted romantic. The internet made 424 00:22:14,359 --> 00:22:16,080 Speaker 2: me who I am, and it allowed me to thrive 425 00:22:16,160 --> 00:22:18,800 Speaker 2: both this as a person and a professional, and it 426 00:22:18,840 --> 00:22:20,840 Speaker 2: continues to do so every day, except now I have 427 00:22:20,920 --> 00:22:23,560 Speaker 2: the fight seemingly every app and service to get them 428 00:22:23,560 --> 00:22:26,240 Speaker 2: to do what I want. As I've said before, I 429 00:22:26,320 --> 00:22:29,240 Speaker 2: will never forgive these people for what they've done to 430 00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:31,800 Speaker 2: the computer, as I love what the computer has done 431 00:22:31,800 --> 00:22:33,960 Speaker 2: for me, and I hate what the computer now does 432 00:22:34,000 --> 00:22:37,160 Speaker 2: to other people and myself. Because Apple, Google and Meta 433 00:22:37,240 --> 00:22:41,280 Speaker 2: need to increase quarterly revenues. Well, look, it's easy to 434 00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:43,440 Speaker 2: give in too pessimism here, but I'd argue the better 435 00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:46,359 Speaker 2: alternative is to be loud and annoying and extremely verbal 436 00:22:46,359 --> 00:22:49,800 Speaker 2: about the problems you see. Every single website you use 437 00:22:49,800 --> 00:22:51,879 Speaker 2: has a feedback form, and I really encourage you to 438 00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:54,199 Speaker 2: use them, as I encourage you to complain about these 439 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:57,000 Speaker 2: problems on social media and to regularly say the names 440 00:22:57,000 --> 00:22:59,520 Speaker 2: of the people who cause these problems to everybody you know. 441 00:23:00,040 --> 00:23:03,320 Speaker 2: If you're feeling particularly spicy, perhaps right you're elected officials 442 00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:05,359 Speaker 2: that you believe the quality of digital products you're using 443 00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:07,720 Speaker 2: is getting worse as a means of increasing stock prices, 444 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:11,040 Speaker 2: and add that doing so is anti democratic, anti competitive, 445 00:23:11,400 --> 00:23:14,640 Speaker 2: and an American and very harmful. But really, just say 446 00:23:14,680 --> 00:23:17,600 Speaker 2: on American, say to them, look like, look, this isn't 447 00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:21,679 Speaker 2: real business, this isn't what America's for. And I realized 448 00:23:21,680 --> 00:23:23,560 Speaker 2: why that might not sound so good right now, But 449 00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,840 Speaker 2: maybe you listen to this in the future. And there's 450 00:23:26,840 --> 00:23:29,320 Speaker 2: another idea. I think a lot of these executives have 451 00:23:29,400 --> 00:23:31,679 Speaker 2: email accounts. Why not let them know how you feel. 452 00:23:31,720 --> 00:23:34,920 Speaker 2: I'm not saying be horrible or rude like Jeff Atamazon 453 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:37,000 Speaker 2: dot Com. I think like, you don't need to. Don't 454 00:23:37,000 --> 00:23:40,480 Speaker 2: be horrible to these people, really please don't. But I 455 00:23:40,520 --> 00:23:42,439 Speaker 2: think you should look them up and let them know 456 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:45,000 Speaker 2: how bad things have become and mention how long you've 457 00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:47,880 Speaker 2: used them and how bad they are, and how you're 458 00:23:47,920 --> 00:23:50,520 Speaker 2: going to keep emailing them every couple weeks. Let them know. 459 00:23:50,600 --> 00:23:52,480 Speaker 2: You don't want to spam them, you don't want to thrown, 460 00:23:52,560 --> 00:23:54,200 Speaker 2: you don't want to be nasty. You just want to 461 00:23:54,359 --> 00:23:59,040 Speaker 2: very patiently let them know. Because these people, they're insulated, 462 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:01,840 Speaker 2: they're safe they don't have anything that really scares or 463 00:24:01,920 --> 00:24:04,600 Speaker 2: upsets them. They read their emails. That's the one thing 464 00:24:04,640 --> 00:24:06,960 Speaker 2: I know. But another thing you can do is be 465 00:24:07,080 --> 00:24:09,560 Speaker 2: less useful. If you use Instagram, use it in a 466 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:13,119 Speaker 2: way that actively generates less engagement. Click through a few stories, 467 00:24:13,119 --> 00:24:15,080 Speaker 2: then drop off the app. Don't use the feed, avoid 468 00:24:15,080 --> 00:24:18,199 Speaker 2: clicking or staying on any ads, go through them quickly, 469 00:24:18,320 --> 00:24:20,919 Speaker 2: and as Jeff Fowler at The Washington Post recommends, reset 470 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:23,600 Speaker 2: your feed regularly. Delete the data that these companies have 471 00:24:23,640 --> 00:24:25,560 Speaker 2: on you regularly, and they'll be links. By the way 472 00:24:25,560 --> 00:24:27,880 Speaker 2: to this, and anytime a company asks you for feedback 473 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:30,320 Speaker 2: that isn't about a customer service w app, skip it, 474 00:24:30,359 --> 00:24:33,520 Speaker 2: close the browser. That data is only useful for them. 475 00:24:33,840 --> 00:24:36,719 Speaker 2: In general, engage with apps less, both in the amount 476 00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:38,320 Speaker 2: of time you spend on them and the amount of 477 00:24:38,359 --> 00:24:41,720 Speaker 2: time you interact with their features and obsessively read every 478 00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:45,640 Speaker 2: single privacy policy. These companies make billions of dollars off 479 00:24:45,760 --> 00:24:48,920 Speaker 2: idle muscle memory based use of their software. So get 480 00:24:49,000 --> 00:24:51,119 Speaker 2: used to letrics and work against them. And if you 481 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:54,160 Speaker 2: really don't use the service, stop using it. By the way, 482 00:24:54,160 --> 00:24:55,720 Speaker 2: I'm not going to judge you for staying on an 483 00:24:55,720 --> 00:24:57,480 Speaker 2: oath of them. I'm still on Instagram because it's where 484 00:24:57,480 --> 00:24:58,840 Speaker 2: a lot of my friends are and I like seeing 485 00:24:58,840 --> 00:25:02,040 Speaker 2: what they're up to. Again, not against these products in principle, 486 00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:04,639 Speaker 2: I just hate what they've become. But more importantly, I 487 00:25:04,640 --> 00:25:07,840 Speaker 2: want you to find solidarity with others against the rot economy. 488 00:25:08,119 --> 00:25:10,840 Speaker 2: Every single person you meet is a victim. Every single 489 00:25:10,920 --> 00:25:13,800 Speaker 2: person you meet faces similar problems to you, and every 490 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:16,760 Speaker 2: single person you know is likely pissed off at email spam, 491 00:25:16,960 --> 00:25:19,720 Speaker 2: the collapse of social networks and Google, and or the 492 00:25:19,720 --> 00:25:23,680 Speaker 2: abulnerable state of modern business software. We all have this. 493 00:25:23,680 --> 00:25:26,120 Speaker 2: This is a thing that all of us deal with. 494 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:29,840 Speaker 2: It's bipartisan, it's cross culture, it's cross class. Though I 495 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:32,679 Speaker 2: would argue it hurts people the lower their income is 496 00:25:32,800 --> 00:25:36,840 Speaker 2: much like most of America, and this is something we 497 00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:38,879 Speaker 2: all face. I know it sounds kind of smaltzy' to 498 00:25:38,880 --> 00:25:40,840 Speaker 2: be like, oh, you're fellow man, but really it is. 499 00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:42,760 Speaker 2: I don't know how else you connect with people, but 500 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:46,280 Speaker 2: I guarantee their software pisces them off. But the reason 501 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:48,520 Speaker 2: that these companies have been able to penetrate and poison 502 00:25:48,600 --> 00:25:51,080 Speaker 2: so many things using software as a combination of lacks 503 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:54,120 Speaker 2: regulation and a dose style society or approach to technology. 504 00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:57,280 Speaker 2: They want no no, They need you to feel hopeless. 505 00:25:57,720 --> 00:25:59,560 Speaker 2: They need you to think that they're too big, that 506 00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:01,760 Speaker 2: they can grow oh forever, or do whatever they want 507 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:03,800 Speaker 2: to you, and that there'll never be enough negative sentiment 508 00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:06,440 Speaker 2: to change their ways. The reality is these people are 509 00:26:06,480 --> 00:26:09,840 Speaker 2: extremely vulnerable, extremely unprepared, and they don't know how to 510 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:13,639 Speaker 2: deal with pushback. Tech executives are poorly media trained, thin skinned, 511 00:26:13,640 --> 00:26:16,959 Speaker 2: and have never faced any meaningful negative consumer sentiment, largely 512 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:21,080 Speaker 2: because they've never faced any meaningful competition. They simply do 513 00:26:21,119 --> 00:26:22,840 Speaker 2: not believe you will act in a way that doesn't 514 00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:25,159 Speaker 2: benefit them, because they've done literally everything they can to 515 00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:28,719 Speaker 2: make it difficult to avoid or leave their systems. They 516 00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:31,280 Speaker 2: need you to think that things will always be this bad, 517 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:33,199 Speaker 2: or that they'll get worse, and for you to just 518 00:26:33,240 --> 00:26:35,520 Speaker 2: sit there and take it, rather than screaming in their 519 00:26:35,560 --> 00:26:39,720 Speaker 2: fucking faces about what they're doing and saying it's unacceptable. 520 00:26:40,119 --> 00:26:43,480 Speaker 2: They want you to give up. Don't let them destabilize you. 521 00:26:44,160 --> 00:26:47,200 Speaker 2: Do not let them pump you full of cynicism, of pessimism, 522 00:26:47,280 --> 00:26:49,560 Speaker 2: of the belief that there's nothing good and thus that 523 00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:51,879 Speaker 2: there can be nothing that will ever change that we're 524 00:26:51,920 --> 00:26:56,040 Speaker 2: in this unchanging hell. We are not going forward. One 525 00:26:56,080 --> 00:26:58,080 Speaker 2: of my missions with this podcast is to give you 526 00:26:58,160 --> 00:27:00,439 Speaker 2: the language to describe what is being done to you 527 00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:03,119 Speaker 2: and the names of those responsible for doing it to you. 528 00:27:03,680 --> 00:27:06,680 Speaker 2: I fundamentally believe that anyone can understand the stuff I'm 529 00:27:06,720 --> 00:27:09,080 Speaker 2: talking about, and that the tech behind it is not magic, 530 00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:11,280 Speaker 2: and that the terrible things being done to you are 531 00:27:11,320 --> 00:27:13,399 Speaker 2: being done in the name of the rot economy and 532 00:27:13,440 --> 00:27:16,640 Speaker 2: perpetual growth, and that none of these things are mystical 533 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,320 Speaker 2: or requires some insane background. You can do this. I 534 00:27:20,359 --> 00:27:22,840 Speaker 2: talk to so many of you over email, and it's 535 00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:26,960 Speaker 2: awesome because your teachers, robbers, your people that drive into 536 00:27:27,040 --> 00:27:29,399 Speaker 2: banks and with a big car. No no, no, no 537 00:27:29,480 --> 00:27:31,719 Speaker 2: more criminal stuff. Please keep that off the Reddit. But 538 00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:34,160 Speaker 2: generally most of the people that contact me, and non 539 00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:36,240 Speaker 2: tech people, you all seem to fucking get out. I 540 00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:38,199 Speaker 2: don't know what the problem is, and I want you 541 00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:40,800 Speaker 2: to understand this stuff so you can make better decisions 542 00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:42,600 Speaker 2: and also understand that you are the victim of a 543 00:27:42,680 --> 00:27:45,080 Speaker 2: con where you've been convinced that you were behind the times, 544 00:27:45,240 --> 00:27:47,879 Speaker 2: when the tech industry just actually gave up on serving you. 545 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,280 Speaker 2: Our economy and the majority of public companies are run 546 00:27:51,320 --> 00:27:53,520 Speaker 2: by people who do not face any real problems or 547 00:27:53,560 --> 00:27:56,040 Speaker 2: do any real work, and the tech industry, run by 548 00:27:56,040 --> 00:27:59,720 Speaker 2: similar people, has oriented itself around building products and services. 549 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:02,479 Speaker 2: To say, album these people do not use their own products, 550 00:28:02,560 --> 00:28:04,040 Speaker 2: or if they do, they do so in such a 551 00:28:04,080 --> 00:28:07,400 Speaker 2: distant way that it doesn't really matter if they suck. It's 552 00:28:07,440 --> 00:28:10,240 Speaker 2: time to speak about these companies and this softer and 553 00:28:10,280 --> 00:28:13,840 Speaker 2: plain terms. We are in an era of rot our markets, 554 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:16,879 Speaker 2: dominated by a growth obsessed death cult so powerful that 555 00:28:16,960 --> 00:28:19,440 Speaker 2: it's just accepted that the only good stocks are those 556 00:28:19,440 --> 00:28:23,000 Speaker 2: that grow every single quarter. A good company is no 557 00:28:23,119 --> 00:28:25,560 Speaker 2: longer one that provides a good service or that will 558 00:28:25,600 --> 00:28:28,080 Speaker 2: be around in ten years. No, it's one that provides 559 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:29,960 Speaker 2: a service in such a way that they can jack 560 00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:33,280 Speaker 2: up the prices or upsell customers while also somehow getting 561 00:28:33,359 --> 00:28:36,800 Speaker 2: more customers. If anything, the rot economy is kind of 562 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:39,280 Speaker 2: like a global Ponzi scheme, where the only companies that 563 00:28:39,320 --> 00:28:42,200 Speaker 2: succeed are the ones that can continually get more customers 564 00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:45,040 Speaker 2: and come up with new ways to get more customers 565 00:28:45,080 --> 00:28:47,440 Speaker 2: that don't exist yet. Even if the service or the 566 00:28:47,440 --> 00:28:50,560 Speaker 2: goods provided are bad, it doesn't matter to these companies 567 00:28:50,640 --> 00:28:52,920 Speaker 2: that the only thing that grows forever is cancer, and 568 00:28:52,960 --> 00:28:56,240 Speaker 2: the perpetual growth could very well falter and then crash everything. 569 00:28:56,960 --> 00:29:00,280 Speaker 2: It's short term thinking all the time. I want you 570 00:29:00,400 --> 00:29:02,960 Speaker 2: to start seeing everything through the lens of growth, and 571 00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:05,920 Speaker 2: I believe everything will start making more sense as a result. 572 00:29:06,200 --> 00:29:08,160 Speaker 2: And these companies don't even have to do it this 573 00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:11,440 Speaker 2: way success and being a decent in the moral sense 574 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:14,760 Speaker 2: of the word sparingly in the case of capitalism, you 575 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:16,800 Speaker 2: can do this as a company. These things are not 576 00:29:16,880 --> 00:29:20,360 Speaker 2: mutually exclusive. These companies could have modest two to five 577 00:29:20,360 --> 00:29:22,920 Speaker 2: percent growth each quarter. They could make good software that 578 00:29:22,960 --> 00:29:24,720 Speaker 2: people like. They could do all of these things, but 579 00:29:24,760 --> 00:29:28,120 Speaker 2: they choose not to. They'd rather hurt us because growth 580 00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:30,600 Speaker 2: is more important to them than whether our lives fucking suck. 581 00:29:30,920 --> 00:29:33,680 Speaker 2: They'd rather refuse to maintain a rigorously test their products, 582 00:29:33,760 --> 00:29:36,920 Speaker 2: especially their software, because investing in customers doesn't grow your 583 00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:39,680 Speaker 2: customer base as fast as focusing on finding new ones. 584 00:29:40,320 --> 00:29:42,480 Speaker 2: And these things have been happening for over a decade, 585 00:29:42,640 --> 00:29:45,240 Speaker 2: and being able to explain them for you, I mean, 586 00:29:45,960 --> 00:29:47,680 Speaker 2: it's important. You need to be able to do this 587 00:29:47,720 --> 00:29:51,000 Speaker 2: in plain English. Having conversations about this is important too. 588 00:29:51,280 --> 00:29:53,440 Speaker 2: Talk to your friends and your family and your coworkers 589 00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:55,560 Speaker 2: about this stuff. They're all dealing with it too. I 590 00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:57,960 Speaker 2: don't care if my work's involved. Just tell them what's 591 00:29:58,000 --> 00:30:01,720 Speaker 2: fucking happening. Look, you can't change the world on your own, 592 00:30:01,760 --> 00:30:03,840 Speaker 2: and you may very well go through the world without 593 00:30:03,880 --> 00:30:06,520 Speaker 2: changing much at all. But in your own small way, 594 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:09,240 Speaker 2: you can, at the very least, contribute to a greater 595 00:30:09,320 --> 00:30:12,600 Speaker 2: hope and positivity in the bubble around you. The ideas 596 00:30:12,640 --> 00:30:15,640 Speaker 2: you have of a fair or better, more inclusive world, 597 00:30:15,800 --> 00:30:18,160 Speaker 2: one where people are not vilified for being who they are, 598 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:21,280 Speaker 2: are shared by most people. We outnumber them, and we 599 00:30:21,320 --> 00:30:24,960 Speaker 2: outnumber them by an overwhelming margin. The demands you make 600 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:28,280 Speaker 2: of the world do not necessarily need to be realistic, 601 00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:31,280 Speaker 2: but they can be fair. It's not unfair to demand 602 00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:33,520 Speaker 2: a tech industry that is worth I don't know, a 603 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:36,160 Speaker 2: few hundred billion dollars while providing a service that largely 604 00:30:36,200 --> 00:30:38,960 Speaker 2: benefits the world around us. At the very least, we 605 00:30:38,960 --> 00:30:42,480 Speaker 2: can ask for shit that works. Discussing ideas what a 606 00:30:42,480 --> 00:30:45,600 Speaker 2: better world might look like. It's eternal. It's the root 607 00:30:45,600 --> 00:30:48,600 Speaker 2: of humanity. It's what gives us light in the darkest times, 608 00:30:48,640 --> 00:30:50,240 Speaker 2: and what the darkest people in the world wish to 609 00:30:50,320 --> 00:30:53,120 Speaker 2: rob of us, not simply hope, but the ingredients of hope, 610 00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:55,360 Speaker 2: the stuff that builds the foundation that allows us to 611 00:30:55,360 --> 00:30:58,840 Speaker 2: truly believe. This isn't to say any of this will 612 00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:01,840 Speaker 2: be an easy process, nor one without deep dark moments, 613 00:31:01,880 --> 00:31:03,720 Speaker 2: but at the very least we can have standards and 614 00:31:03,720 --> 00:31:07,840 Speaker 2: beliefs in ourselves of what better looks like. And now 615 00:31:08,160 --> 00:31:09,840 Speaker 2: it kind of feels a little silly to hold up 616 00:31:09,880 --> 00:31:12,360 Speaker 2: better software and technology is such a serious concept, but 617 00:31:12,400 --> 00:31:15,160 Speaker 2: I think the world as it stands is suffering due 618 00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:17,960 Speaker 2: to the tolerance we've had for the horrifying conditions of 619 00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:21,520 Speaker 2: modern software, which has now been deeply penetrated into every 620 00:31:21,600 --> 00:31:24,240 Speaker 2: part of our lives, in some cases leaving trash lying 621 00:31:24,280 --> 00:31:26,640 Speaker 2: around that we find ourselves tripping over all the time. 622 00:31:27,240 --> 00:31:30,800 Speaker 2: Software has, to some extent, truly improved humanity, all having 623 00:31:30,960 --> 00:31:33,360 Speaker 2: levels of connection that are truly special, both with those 624 00:31:33,360 --> 00:31:35,720 Speaker 2: we know and those we barely know. It has, however, 625 00:31:35,800 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 2: grown without restraint, without true accountability for those who write 626 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:41,800 Speaker 2: it and deploy it, and let's be honest, barely maintain 627 00:31:41,840 --> 00:31:46,000 Speaker 2: it or actively and consciously striving to undermine it. I 628 00:31:46,040 --> 00:31:48,520 Speaker 2: cannot promise you that will ever have solutions to any 629 00:31:48,560 --> 00:31:51,240 Speaker 2: of these problems. But I can, as you can, say 630 00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:53,640 Speaker 2: what a better world looks like. And a better world 631 00:31:53,720 --> 00:31:56,520 Speaker 2: is one where software works for, not against, the people 632 00:31:56,520 --> 00:31:59,200 Speaker 2: that use it. There's no harm in liking or even 633 00:31:59,240 --> 00:32:02,160 Speaker 2: loving technology. Ges Liking it allows you to more articulately 634 00:32:02,240 --> 00:32:04,560 Speaker 2: explain why you fucking hate what they've made of it. 635 00:32:05,280 --> 00:32:08,280 Speaker 2: Expressing what good looks like what you love allows you 636 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:10,240 Speaker 2: to cut deeper with your hatred for those who have 637 00:32:10,320 --> 00:32:14,000 Speaker 2: caused you so much harm. This starts, by the way, 638 00:32:14,040 --> 00:32:16,960 Speaker 2: with naming those responsible for poisoning the world with software. 639 00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:20,520 Speaker 2: Sundopeshi of Google, satch In the Della of Microsoft, Tim 640 00:32:20,560 --> 00:32:22,920 Speaker 2: Cook and Phil Schiller who runs the app store of Apple, 641 00:32:23,160 --> 00:32:25,880 Speaker 2: Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, and the other invisible war criminals 642 00:32:26,080 --> 00:32:29,000 Speaker 2: responsible for the destruction of our digital lives. They have 643 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:32,240 Speaker 2: nothing but their names. The tech industry is so woefully 644 00:32:32,280 --> 00:32:34,840 Speaker 2: unprepared to deal with regular people having the language and 645 00:32:34,960 --> 00:32:38,560 Speaker 2: understanding of their horrible acts. Crisis p Arthentek does not 646 00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:40,760 Speaker 2: know how to deal with real people saying why did 647 00:32:40,760 --> 00:32:43,560 Speaker 2: you fuck up my website? In the thousands or millions, 648 00:32:44,080 --> 00:32:47,320 Speaker 2: These people have never ever dealt with real accountability, or 649 00:32:47,360 --> 00:32:49,640 Speaker 2: even a real conversation about what they're doing and why 650 00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:53,080 Speaker 2: they're doing it. We deserve better, so we should fucking 651 00:32:53,160 --> 00:33:04,320 Speaker 2: ask for it. Thank you for listening to Better Offline. 652 00:33:04,480 --> 00:33:06,880 Speaker 4: The editor and composer of the Better Offline theme song 653 00:33:06,960 --> 00:33:09,640 Speaker 4: is Matasowski. You can check out more of his music 654 00:33:09,640 --> 00:33:13,280 Speaker 4: and audio projects at Matasowski dot com, M A T 655 00:33:13,280 --> 00:33:14,440 Speaker 4: T O S O. 656 00:33:15,040 --> 00:33:17,640 Speaker 2: W s ki dot com. 657 00:33:17,680 --> 00:33:20,000 Speaker 4: You can email me at easy at Better Offline dot 658 00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:22,239 Speaker 4: com or visit Better Offline dot com to find more 659 00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:25,640 Speaker 4: podcast links and of course, my newsletter. I also really 660 00:33:25,680 --> 00:33:27,960 Speaker 4: recommend you go to chat dot Where's youreaed dot at 661 00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:30,480 Speaker 4: to visit the discord, and go to our slash. 662 00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:33,320 Speaker 2: Better Offline to check out our reddit. Thank you so 663 00:33:33,440 --> 00:33:34,160 Speaker 2: much for listening. 664 00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:37,720 Speaker 3: Better Offline is a production of cool Zone Media. For 665 00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:41,000 Speaker 3: more from cool Zone Media, visit our website cool Zonemedia 666 00:33:41,040 --> 00:33:43,920 Speaker 3: dot com, or check us out on the iHeartRadio app, 667 00:33:43,920 --> 00:33:45,560 Speaker 3: Apple Podcasts, or wherever. 668 00:33:45,360 --> 00:34:03,200 Speaker 1: You get your podcasts. In wh smash