Dr. Alex Bruns defines produsage as In collaborative communities the creation of shared content takes place in a networked, participatory environment which breaks down the boundaries between producers and consumers and instead enables all participants to be users as well as producers of information and knowledge - frequently in a hybrid role of produser where usage is necessarily also productive. (link)
He goes on to outline four distinct characteristics of produsage that contrast with traditional commercial production.
1. no direct problem solving, rather solutions to problems arise because there are more people that can find a solution. ‘in the bottom-up holoptic model participants can self-nominate as contributors to specific problem-solving activities as their interest is triggered; the more participants do so, and the more such activities run in parallel at the same time, the more likely it is that a solution is found’ (link).
2. In direct contrast to traditional commercial production where a project manager is in control of where and how participants will contribute, produsage sees a more open community where people can choose to participate when, where and how they choose.
3. “granularity of tasks” – means if the project can be divided into individual modules, and if the modules further break down into distinct tasks requiring a limited set of skills and a limited degree of user investment, this boosts both the potential for the development of solutions through probabilistic approaches (as trial-and-error experiments become less costly for participants) and the equipotentiality of contributors (as it becomes easier for all community members to participate). (link).
4. the notion of sharing, not owning content. This flies in the face of traditional commerce where business and market based economies relies on retaining ownership. Whereas produsage is more open, sharing and has full disclosure.
