Online collaborative translation in the platform society

The digital revolution has ushered in unprecedented global connectivity, transforming business models and media content creation. This chapter discusses online collaborative translation (OCT) against the backdrop of critical debates in platform studies, addressing three key objectives: the concept of OCT, its position in the platform society, and its socio-economic ramifications. It proposes OCT as the top-level concept to encapsulate varied forms of digital translation practices (ranging from crowdsourcing to emerging practices like danmu subtitling), owing to its neutrality and inclusivity. In this chapter, OCT is conceptualised along five dimensions: platform nature, engagement pathway, initiation approach, agents involved, and translation modality. This chapter also discusses the important role that translation plays in platform evolution, design, and workflow development, contributing to the phenomenon of platformisation. Additionally, it highlights concerns about translator exploitation as digital labourers by profit-driven platforms. In an era where data is considered the “new oil” and neo-Taylorism prioritises productivity, quantity, and speed, there is a pressing need to address some unsustainable practices in OCT and translation at large.