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   Nathan Schneider (ntnsndr@social.coop)'s status on Tuesday, 05-Dec-2023 18:14:02 JST Nathan Schneider

   Signal is a good reason (along with Wikipedia, Mastodon, and Firefox) that we need way more nonprofit tech.

   https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/signal-meta-google-too-big-18496594.php

   • Embed this notice
     Brendan Jones (brendanjones@fosstodon.org)'s status on Tuesday, 05-Dec-2023 18:51:56 JST Brendan Jones

     in reply to

     @ntnsndr Yeah good read, but I take issue with the conclusion in the last paragraph; “More organizations, whether nonprofit or for-profit, should focus on providing an important function in a sustainable manner, rather than growing for the sake of growth.”

     If a company is for-profit then it’s locked-in to putting profit above all else. Have as much triple bottom line accounting or ‘company values’ as you like, but if there’s a choice between impact and profit, profit takes priority.

   • Embed this notice
     Brendan Jones (brendanjones@fosstodon.org)'s status on Tuesday, 05-Dec-2023 18:55:01 JST Brendan Jones

     in reply to

     @ntnsndr That’s just the systemic incentives. As you say, companies need to be non-profit or not-for-profit to avoid that incentive. Being a co-op of some sort as well would certainly help.

   • Embed this notice
     Clayton Dewey (clayton@social.coop)'s status on Tuesday, 05-Dec-2023 20:07:00 JST Clayton Dewey

     in reply to

     @ntnsndr I've really appreciated the company I work for for having similar values. We're intentionally small and it allows us to stay ethical and down-to-earth.

     There's real value in knowing what "enough" is and then embracing that.

   • Embed this notice
     Nathan Schneider (ntnsndr@social.coop)'s status on Tuesday, 05-Dec-2023 23:44:11 JST Nathan Schneider

     in reply to

     • Brendan Jones

     @Brendanjones right. Co-ops are for-profit. But because they are not designed for *speculative* returns (e.g., a stock price on a casino market), growth is not always an imperative. Some choose to grow, others don't.

   • Embed this notice
     Nathan Schneider (ntnsndr@social.coop)'s status on Wednesday, 06-Dec-2023 05:47:52 JST Nathan Schneider

     in reply to

     • Leo Sammallahti
     • Alistair Davidson

     @moh_kohn Trust also increases revenue! @LeoSammallahti calculated that Social.coop makes more revenue per user than Twitter does.

   • Embed this notice
     Alistair Davidson (moh_kohn@mastodon.scot)'s status on Wednesday, 06-Dec-2023 05:47:53 JST Alistair Davidson

     in reply to

     @ntnsndr Adding surveillance absolutely balloons costs. See also Mastodon Vs twitter.