Cory Doctorow details the path to the enshitifications of Facebook and Twitter.
“This is what changed: the collapse of market, government, and labor constraints, and IP law’s criminalization of disenshittifying, interoperable add-ons. This is why Zuck, an eternal creep, is now letting his creep flag fly so proudly today. Not because he’s a worse person, but because he understands that he can hurt his users and workers to benefit his shareholders without facing any consequences. Zuckerberg 2025 isn’t the most evil Zuck, he’s the most unconstrained Zuck.”
Sort of. There is no law that requires corporations to maximize short-term returns to shareholders. It entirely depends on the corporate charter. There are corporate charters that include wording that quarterly profit optimization is not a goal. C-levels repeating the “fiduciary duty” mantra are generally blowing smoke, since their corporate charters can (usually) be amended with approval of a majority of shareholders. In other words, it’s the way it is because they set it up that way.