Fan Labor as Work? Fandom Economics
Fandom Economics
Fandom Economies are real. How do fandom economies work? Fandom economies are usually gift economies. In one of my previous posts I discussed the trend of "workism" and what I think is wrong with it. I also displayed Ikigai which appears to be a central philosophy behind the workism trend. Workism essentially is a religionization of the worker lifestyle and under this way of thinking the job becomes almost a spiritual or religious function to provide meaning to the laborer.
To bring the discussion further I now discuss fandoms and fandom economics which include gifting. When someone is a fan they will appreciate the content of the content producer to such an extent that the content itself can become a collectible. The content as collectible concept already exists in the crypto space as the non fungible token.
Non-fungible tokens and gift economics
The non fungible token makes it possible for the content producer to launch limited edition collectibles. We for example see with crypto kitties that this idea has merit and we also see now that in gaming the possibility of unique, rare, or even one of a kind items, can be auctioned by the game developers to the players. It is my current legal understanding that these auctions also are not securities because what is being offered exists for the purpose of getting an advantage in the context of the game itself.
In terms of the gift economics, a gift is able to be received without being taxed. According to my understanding of the tax code a gift is tax free for the receiver but not for the sender. In a fandom context the gifts from fans in theory would not be considered as income to the receiver.
Fandom art
Fans do produce labor in the form of fan art. This fan art can include fan fiction, it can include many different aspects. Nothing prevents the crypto world from creating fan fiction for example, or from allowing fans to produce art to benefit the game as part of the game mechanics.
Is being a fan a job? Is it work?
Is it a job to be a fan? I think this is an interesting question to ask. Is there meaning, purpose, responsibility, that goes with being a fan? Fans do not get paid in money. Fans get paid in art itself. For example, fans of Star Trek may not want or need money but every fan of Star Trek is going to want more Star Trek, more storylines, more character development, more episodes of the series produced, more of everything Star Trek. The fans of Star Trek ultimately form the economy which in a self perpetuating feedback loop continues the creation of more of the Star Trek universe.
I doubt most people think of being a fan as "a job" or as "work" but fans do produce content, do put in work, and fan labor is real.
References
Turk, T. (2014). Fan work: Labor, worth, and participation in fandom’s gift economy. Transformative Works and Cultures, 15, 1-8.
To listen to the audio version of this article click on the play image.
Brought to you by @tts. If you find it useful please consider upvoting this reply.