Cory shares the motivation behind keeping his audiobooks off Audible—even if it means sacrificing a paycheck—and explains how DRM laws allow Amazon to exert control over books they didn’t even create. The conversation covers everything from how monopoly power has shaped the digital marketplace, to the rise of “enshittification,” a term Cory coined to describe the lifecycle of once-useful tech platforms. They also discuss the importance of decentralized social media, the future of authorship in a platform-dominated world, and why it’s time to stop trying to shop your way out of broken systems and start organizing for real change.

Read the full transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bC4FqH1ZzxPlbtH-Vs1-u-oJFnu4WRKHVHszr4VAbtI/edit?tab=t.0

Use promo code: SWITCH when signing up for a new Libro.fm membership to get two additional credits to use on any audiobooks—meaning you’ll have three from the start.

About Cory Doctotow: Cory Doctorow is a bestselling author of both fiction and nonfiction, a longtime advocate for digital rights, and co-editor of the blog Boing Boing. His recent works include The Bezzle, Picks and Shovels, and the upcoming nonfiction book Enshittification. He also runs the daily newsletter Pluralistic.net.

Get Cory’s Books:

• Picks and Shovels
• Enshittification

Books discussed on today’s episode:

• Little Bosses Everywhere by Bridget Read
• Careless People by Lucy Osborne
• Original Sin by Alex Thompson and Jake Tapper
• I’ll Tell You When I’m Home by Hala Alyan
• Disappoint Me by Nikole Dinan