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- Platform Economy and Uneven Financial Geographies: The Case of Fintech in PortugalPublication . Vale, Mário; Ferreira, DanielaThis chapter examines Portugal's fintech ecosystem within the global platform capitalism context, examining its role in urban development and regional disparities. The study addresses the theoretical implications of the global fintech revolution, emphasizing digital transformation and financial inclusion. It details Portugal's fintech evolution, regulatory challenges, and investment trends, noting the concentration of fintech activities in urban centers like Lisbon and Porto. The chapter concludes by discussing the opportunities and challenges facing Portugal's fintech sector, including regulatory navigation, cybersecurity, and the potential for economic inequality.
- The three levels of the urban digital divide: bridging issues of coverage, usage and its outcomes in VGI platformsPublication . Ferreira, Daniela; Vale, Mário; Miguel, Renato Carmo; Encalada Abarca, Luis; Marcolin, CarlaThis article aims to provide a more detailed conception of the production of urban digital divides by VGI platforms in the context of the platform economy, through the articulation of the first (access and coverage), second (usage and skills) and third (outcomes) level of the digital divide. Our conceptual approach departs from a discussion of the geographical consequences of the different levels of the digital divide, focusing on their application to the study of VGI platforms, especially those working under the logic of the platform economy. We draw on a multi-level case study of the geographies of TripAdvisor and the geographies of restaurants or similar establishments in Lisbon, which comprised data analysis and interviews with restaurant owners, to argue that VGI platforms are producing urban digital divides that can only be fully detected through the triangulation of the different levels of the digital divide. They are not only producing different levels of territorial coverage in cities, but also different levels of usage intensity which have caused negative and positive outcomes for the firms associated. All these levels are spatially distributed, and such distribution is even more pronounced at a finer scale. We conclude that VGI platforms are producing a myriad of new forms of spatial divides that need more attention, given that the digital divide is present within the mechanisms designed by digital platforms. The vast and complex effects of such data engineering is best captured when all three levels of the digital divide are taken into account.
- The cyberdivisions produced by the design of VGI under the platform economy: the case of the restaurant sector in TripAdvisorPublication . Ferreira, Daniela; Vale, Mário; Carmo, Renato MiguelThere is increasing concern regarding the inequalities produced by digital platforms based on volunteered geographic information (VGI). Several forms of inequalities have been observed, namely the unequal spatial coverage and the uneven levels of usage even in territories with good coverage. However, VGI platforms under the logic of platform economy have generated other forms of spatial inequality that require more attention. The cyberspace within VGI platforms is producing different cyberspatialities, especially with the platformisation processes that have made this type of inequality more evident. With this in mind, this paper aims to explore the making of cyberdivisions under the platform economy. We argue that the design of VGI within digital platforms is generating cyberdivisions in the urban economy. This research is particularly interested in exploring the restaurant sector in the TripAdvisor platform in the city of Lisbon. In this paper, we draw on a representative survey by questionnaire to restaurant firm owners. We obtained 385 responses out of a universe of 3453 restaurants. This sample provides a confidence level of 95% and a confidence interval of 5%. In addition, we webscraped data from TripAdvisor to assess its coverage in Lisbon. This study reveals that there are different forms of online presence and engagement which have generated cyberdivisions.