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User ownership and control can combat billionaire monopoly of big tech says Co-operatives UK CEO Rose Marley in response to Twitter takeover

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Twitter bird
Elon Musk has had a £44bn bid for Twitter accepted by the platform's Board.

Amid concerns over Twitter's impending £44bn sale to Elon Musk, are co-operative tech platforms the compelling solution to billionaire control?

Rose Marley, CEO of Co-operatives UK, said: “In recent years, we’ve seen increased demand for fair and equitable technology platforms, where users have more of a say over how the platform is run and how their data is used.

"These types of technology co-ops already exist in sectors such as food, logistics and social care. For example, Equal Care Co-op is a digital care and support platform that puts care users and providers in control. We're quietly confident that co‑operative tech platforms will steadily and exponentially grow over the next decade – including in the realm of social media.

Creating co-operative tech platforms
Our UnFound programme is helping unlock the potential of user-owned platforms.

"The reaction to Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter shows growing unease with Big Tech as an industry, where the power and control is held by a handful of billionaires. That’s why our UnFound programme is focused on creating co-operative tech platforms – ethical, digital businesses that are owned and controlled by those that create and use the platform.”

We've exciting news about our UnFound Accelerator - business support programme for founders at the early stage of setting up their platform co‑op - on the horizon. Sign up to our newsletter to be the first to hear the latest on platform co-ops.

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