Daily, the world generates about 2.5 quintillion bytes of data (2.5 Exabytes), according to IBM. However, access to these assets is not so balanced. Major market players centralize most of this volume of information, creating an economy completely dependent on the flow that runs within what we can call digital fiefdoms. The monopolization of these feudal lords in society is extremely dangerous, which can harm not only greater market competitiveness but also its ability to stand out and innovate amid continuous growth.
This term, coined a long time ago, refers to the ancient landowners who directed people to work in their planting chains. Today, the premise remains, shifting the lands to the digital environment, with their owners represented by large companies holding user data, including Google, Meta, Amazon, and many others.
In these business models, the assets harvested from users are strategically exploited aiming for some source of income—creating a profit dynamic based on the dominance of this continuous access and access to the sources generating information in digital services, the same concerning problem that also occurred in ancient feudalism.
There are few digital feudal lords who centralize most of these assets, creating an inevitable dependence on them. After all, without these digital accesses, we wouldn’t be able to communicate across various social networks, conduct in-depth searches on global search engines, or access real-time information about everything happening worldwide.
We are monopolized by the exclusive economy that runs within these digital fiefdoms, and in the face of any internal changes, we must adapt to these alterations to continue having access to what happens in these environments. An inevitable dependence for the ‘serfs’ (users) who see no other choice in a constantly connected universe.
For the rest of the market, the damages of this monopolization are even greater. This is because, to gain access to a piece of this digital fiefdom, the costs end up being much higher due to this centralization in the hands of a few, requiring greater financial investment for increased online visibility. However, not all companies can manage economically effectively to allow this type of financial direction.
Investments in digital marketing, according to WebFX estimates, show enormous variation, ranging from $50.00 to $6,000.00 per month. For small and medium-sized businesses, it is very difficult to consistently allocate such amounts, causing them to lose ground to competitors with better management and structure in this regard and, consequently, lose their innovative capacity to stand out.
The security of this information is also not so guaranteed, another negative point that needs to be highlighted. In 2024, for example, about 2,500 Google documents were leaked, containing details about how the company collects, stores, and uses user information, including clicks and Chrome browsing data. Even with so many laws aimed at ensuring the implementation of security systems, what is seen in practice is still quite flawed.
Those who understand the rules of the game can benefit from this dynamic and steer the matches in their favor. However, not everyone will have the same equality of access and investment opportunities in these resources to gain a larger piece of land in these environments. Something, indeed, quite difficult for those who cannot secure a better opportunity in this conglomerate.
Each platform, with its respective feudal lord, establishes its own rules for those interested in benefiting from its lands—a diversity that needs better regulation so that access is not so restricted to those with greater financial resources. Along with this, something even more fundamental is the education and training of professionals to deeply understand how this dynamic works and how to protect themselves to avoid risks of leaks or thefts, which unfortunately are frequent worldwide.
It is necessary to adopt awareness measures to prevent these feudal lords from gaining ever more power. The more players understand these rules and know how to use them to their advantage, the greater the chances of benefiting from the advantages connectivity brings to the market’s competitive potential.
Alexandre Pierro holds a master’s degree in innovation management and engineering, a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, nuclear physics, and is a management specialist at PALAS, a pioneering consultancy in ISO innovation in Latin America.
