The Free Internet Was Just a Subsidized Loan, and Now Big Tech Is Collecting

The free internet was nothing more than a subsidized loan, with big tech now collecting the bill, according to a former commercial banker. During the aftermath of the 2008 financial crash, central banks kept interest rates low, causing trillions of dollars to flow into venture capital. Tech startups were funded with the instruction to capture market share at any cost, without needing to turn a profit.

Consumers enjoyed cheap services like Uber rides, cloud storage, ad-free streaming, and instant deliveries, all subsidized by sovereign wealth funds and venture equity. This led to an era of "predatory pricing," which people mistook for technological innovation. Cory Doctorow coined the term "enshittification" to describe this process, which involves treating users like royalty, turning them off to attract business customers, and then squeezing both users and businesses for profits.

Search engines evolved from clean and efficient tools to platforms that prioritize revenue-generating content over user utility. Online retail saw sellers promised direct access to millions of buyers with minimal fees, but now third-party merchants face hefty platform fees and sponsored ads, leading to inflated prices and reduced margins.

Streaming services also saw a shift from free, ad-free access to higher prices, password restrictions, and ad-supported tiers. The banking industry has seen regulations banning similar deceptive practices, but big tech continues to employ similar tactics, trapping users and extracting every remaining cent for shareholders.