Middleware and the Illusory Promise of End-User Control

Concerned about the power that social media now wield, a chorus of tech-minded reformers have called for a return to the internet’s foundational design principles of interoperability and end-user control. This group argues for “middleware”—online tools like browser extensions and consumer-facing protocols that would enable people to take control of their online experiences across the web. This article argues that the campaign for middleware is laudable but mostly speculative and inapposite. It proceeds on the disproven theory that consumers can control their online experiences in today’s networked information economy. As such, it distracts reformers from solutions that would redress the structural asymmetries that define today’s market for consumer-facing services, including social media. This article argues that it is time to give up the illusory promise of user control and attend above all to enacting enforceable restrictions on service designs and commercial surveillance practices.