Gov/en/Portal:R&D/Innovations:Deprivatization

💡 In simple words: Some websites take a big cut and keep all the power. WikiDeal helps people take those services back and run them together, like a shared garden instead of a private one.

⚠️ Not yet approved. This page describes a proposal that is still under community review. It is documented here so it can be discussed, improved and endorsed.

Deprivatization

Innovation — WikiDeal R&D

Origin	🟢🔵 Théo Bondolfi + Wikimedia Foundation
Status	Prototype 1 — In testing

What is it?

Deprivatization is the idea of reclaiming markets as commons owned and governed by their users — much as Wikipedia did for encyclopedic knowledge. WikiDeal targets extractive platforms in areas such as babysitting, transport, and housing, and works to convert them into user-governed commons rather than privately owned, fee-extracting intermediaries.

How it works on WikiDeal

WikiDeal provides the shared infrastructure, governance, and legal tools that let a community operate a service it formerly rented from a private platform. Value and decision-making shift toward the users who actually create and rely on the service. Specific transition pathways are documented progressively as the platform evolves.

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See also: All innovations · R&D Portal