Approaching the Neoliberal Ideal

The fluidity of monetary transactions via the internet and apparent adoption of new digital payment mechanisms has provoked this post.

A study commissioned by Visa Europe confirmed (at face value, and not considering bias) that ‘Contactless Cards‘ were preferred by 58% of respondents compared to traditional cash/card payments. Contactless cards allow for the automatic processing of payments up to the value of £15 (think Oyster in stores).

Coupled with this, we have the proliferation of digital currencies, and phone payment solutions such as ‘Google Wallet‘. These technologies are removing friction from the consumptive process, and could potentially make high volumes of micro transactions more serviceable.

So here’s the deep bit: when micro-transactions become realistic to (impose?!) implement en-masse, is there a possibility that every interaction we have with businesses, individuals and generally speaking, within ‘the market’ as a whole, could become monetised?

Here’s a quote which summarises the Neo-liberal ideal:

“A general characteristic of neoliberalism is the desire to intensify and expand the market, by increasing the number, frequency, repeatability, and formalisation of transactions. The ultimate (unreachable) goal of neoliberalism is a universe where every action of every being is a market transaction, conducted in competition with every other being and influencing every other transaction, with transactions occurring in an infinitely short time, and repeated at an infinitely fast rate. “ (Paul Treanor, 2005)

So in respect of media offerings, it could be said that the only limitation to monetising content (whether that be physically tangible assets, or experiential, intangible assets) is our own ingenuity. The technological barriers are being removed.

Perhaps even more importantly, is this an opportunity to abolish queueing? To liberate vast expanses of time from the profound mundanity of standing motionless (or worse, unconsciously jigging or humming to the sound of the in-store radio, only to realise it looks as though you really are enjoying that new Olly Murs tune)?

(The opinions shared in this post do not represent the views of Good Lizard Media, especially in respect of musical preference.)