Mobile communication services and user appropriation

François BarAnnenberg School for Communication and Journalism

University of Southern California

unpacking “appropriation”

0. inspiration

1. appropriation

2. innovation model

3. research questions

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

1556

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

1556 1928

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

“Só me interessa o que não é meu. Lei do homem. Lei do antropófago”

1556 1928

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

1556 1928 1960s

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

1556 1928 1960s 2003

“la créolisation, c'est le métissage avec une valeur ajoutée qui est l'imprévisibilité”

Edouard Glissant, Introduction à une poétique du divers (1996)

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

photos: Bernardo Bolaños

baroquization, creolization and cannibalism

photos: caracoleserrantesbolivia (flickr)

“Among the angels and the vines of the façade of San Lorenzo, an Indian princess appears, and all the symbols of the defeated Incan culture are given a new lease on life. The Indian half-moon disturbs the traditional serenity of the Corinthian vine. American jungle leaves and Mediterranean clover intertwine. The sirens of Ulysses play the Peruvian guitar. And the flora, the fauna, the music, and even the sun of the ancient Indian world are forcefully asserted. There shall be no European culture in the New World unless all of these, our native symbols, are admitted on an equal footing.”Carlos Fuentes (1999) The Buried Mirror - Reflections on Spain and the New World,

-1-three appropriation modes:

baroquization / creolization / cannibalism

Appropriation modes: baroquization

photos: samsooma (flickr)

Appropriation modes: baroquization

photos: superlocal (flickr)

Appropriation modes: baroquization

Appropriation modes: baroquization

Appropriation modes: creolization

photos: Araba Sey, Ruud Elmendorp

Appropriation modes: creolization

Appropriation modes: creolization

Horse-phone:“Like earlier horse-phones, it had a cord. Wire stored on a 5-mile reel played out as a scout rode. The improved model let a rider make calls without having to first dismount and then drive a spike into the ground to complete the electrical connection. Instead, the grounding wire was attached to the horse’s skin. The mild electrical current would pass through its body to its hoofs, one of which was almost always touching the ground.” (Popular Mechanics, Sep. 1907)

Appropriation modes: creolization

photo/graphic: Mike Ousmegine

Appropriation modes: creolization

photo: Jan Chipchase photo: timonoko (flickr)

Appropriation modes: creolization

Photo: Araba Sey Photo: Jan Chipchase

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

Photo: Kathleen Diga

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

Photo: Kathleen Diga

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

Photo: Araba Sey

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

source: http://www.vavolo.com/productdetails.asp,ProductID,2400,,.htm

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

Appropriation modes: cannibalism

-2-appropriation

within thetechnology cycle

1. roll-out

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

m-banking

m-banking

1. roll-out

Photos: Jan Chipchase

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

sentePhotos: Jan Chipchase

m-banking

m-banking

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

Photos: Jan Chipchase

sente

m-banking

1. roll-out

3. re-claim

?

1. roll-out2. appropriate

3. re-claim

three reclamation modes:

co-opt / adapt / block

three reclamation modes:

co-opt / adapt / block

echo:baroquize / creolize / cannibalize

suppliersroll-out technology

usersappropriate

suppliersre-claim

users adoptreject

users baroquizecreolizecannibalize

suppliers co-opt adapt

block

1. roll-out

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

Iterative

Cumulative

End-user driven

Structured learning

Embedded knowledge

Path-dependent

-3-research questions?

1. adopt

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

what is open?

?

1. adopt

2. appropriate

3. re-claim

what remains open?

?

suppliersroll-out technology

usersappropriate

suppliersre-claim

users adoptreject

users baroquizecreolizecannibalize

suppliers co-opt adapt

block

suppliersroll-out technology

usersappropriate

suppliersre-claim

users adoptreject

users baroquizecreolizecannibalize

suppliers co-opt adapt

block

suppliersroll-out technology

usersappropriate

suppliersre-claim

users adoptreject

users baroquizecreolizecannibalize

suppliers co-opt adapt

block

who are the “users”?what motivates them?what resources can they draw upon?how do they go about it?can they get help from others? what do they invent?how do they share their inventions?with what impact?