Wage stagnation drives consumers toward renting over owning big-ticket goods

Evidence

While subscription models have been around for centuries, for example in newspapers, what is novel today is their expansion to new realms: housing, cars, toothbrushes, razors, even private jets. Part of what has enabled these product platforms to flourish in recent years is the stagnation in wages and the decline in savings that we noted in Chapter 1. As less money is saved up, big-ticket purchases like cars and houses become nearly impossible and seemingly cheaper upfront fees appear more enticing. — Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism, 65

Categorization

• SEED: Angle: ‘The economics of renting everything — how wage stagnation is the hidden engine of the subscription economy.’
• XREF: Directly connects to the reader’s platform-analysis framework: causal mechanism linking labor-market stagnation to platform adoption, a link Srnicek emphasizes but Zuboff downplays.