The current era of exploitative digital platforms was made possible by a multi-decade failure to enforce antitrust laws. This policy shift allowed companies to buy rivals (e.g., Facebook buying Instagram) and engage in predatory pricing (e.g., Uber), creating the monopolies that can now extract value without competitive consequence.

Platforms first attract users with quality service, then abuse them to benefit business customers, and finally exploit both groups to extract all value for themselves, leaving a degraded service.

Platform decay isn't inevitable; it occurred because four historical checks and balances were removed. These were: robust antitrust enforcement preventing monopolies, regulation imposing penalties for bad behavior, a powerful tech workforce that could refuse unethical tasks, and technical interoperability that gave users control via third-party tools.

Platforms first attract users with good service, then lock them in. Next, they worsen the user experience to benefit business customers. Finally, they squeeze business customers, extracting all value for shareholders, leaving behind a dysfunctional service.

Dominant tech platforms lack the market incentive to open their ecosystems. Berners-Lee argues that government intervention is the only viable path to mandate interoperability and break down digital walled gardens, as market forces alone have failed.

Laws intended for copyright, like the DMCA's anti-circumvention clause, are weaponized by platforms. They make it a felony to create software that modifies an app's behavior (e.g., an ad-blocker), preventing competition and user choice.

Platforms first attract users with a great service, then pivot to monetizing those users for business customers, and finally extract all value for themselves, degrading the experience for everyone else. This cycle, termed "inshittification," is enabled by locking in users and businesses who become too dependent to leave.

Content moderation laws are difficult and slow to administer. A better solution is requiring platforms to provide users with a simple file of their data and social graph, allowing them to switch services easily and creating real competitive pressure.

By mandating its own WebKit engine and banning more capable alternatives on iOS, Apple prevents web applications from competing effectively with native apps, pushing developers toward its lucrative App Store ecosystem.