A prosumer is a combination of being a
producer and a consumer, producer being what makes a product or provides a
service and consumer being those that purchase and use the products. Toffler
(cited in Ritzer and Jurgenson 2010) believes that “contemporary society is
moving away from the aberrant separation of production and consumption” and is
moving towards the ‘rise of the prosumer’.
An excellent way to witness how
prosumption works first hand is to go to a fast food restaurant such as
McDonalds. After ordering your meal and receiving it, it is then your job to
carry your food that you paid for to your table. Once your done eating, it is
also expected that you clear your table by putting the rubbish in the bins
provided. It’s funny how most of the time you don’t even think about doing this
it just gets done. Even though you have paid for the food, the service is then
up to you. Ritzer and Jurgenson (2010 pg. 18) outline other ways in which
individuals can be a prosumer. They include filling up your car at a petrol
station, working as a bank teller at an ATM and being a caller on a radio show.
There are several things I do in my everyday life that includes me as a
prosumer. As mentioned by Ritzer and Jurgenson ( 2010 pg. 18) I use the self
checkout at supermarkets, mainly because I think I can do it faster than a 16
year old and that way I don’t have to stand awkwardly whilst someone judges my
purchases.
source: memebase.cheezburger.com
In a way I am also a promsumer at my workplace, I get paid to sell
Nike products to people and advertise the stock we sell, yet I have to pay for
the products that I wear in store. In todays society it is clear that
prosumption is evident and occurs more than we think, yet by now we are so used
to how things are run that individuals may not realize that they are prosumers.
Reference:
Ritzer, G Jurgenson, N, 2010, Production,
Consumption, Prosumption: The Nature of Capitalism in the age of the digital
‘prosumer’, Journal of Consumer Culture.
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