Time and Date: May 13, 2025, 3-4pm CET
State, platform capitalism and infrastructural power: Microsoft’s data centres in Greece 2.0
Charis Papaevangelou & Eugenia Siapera
In this talk, Charis Papaevangelou and Eugenia Siapera will present their recent paper “State, platform capitalism and infrastructural power: Microsoft’s data centres in Greece 2.0” out as open access in Platforms & Society, in which they examine the role of the state in enabling platform corporations’ capital accumulation through infrastructural expansion, focusing on Microsoft’s data centre investments in Greece.
Abstract
This article examines the under-explored role of the state in enabling platform capitalism by analysing Microsoft’s infrastructural investment in Greece, as part of the country’s post-pandemic ‘National Recovery and Resilience Plan: Greece 2.0’. While much of the critical literature emphasises platform companies’ control over infrastructure and data, we argue that state facilitation is a crucial component of platform capital accumulation. Through a case study of Microsoft’s construction of three data centres in the region of Attica, we show how the Greek state actively facilitated this investment, framing it as a driver of modernisation and economic recovery. We base our study on a comprehensive document analysis of official communications, regulatory frameworks and legal documents. This involvement exemplifies how semi-peripheral states like Greece, shaped by neoliberal restructuring and economic dependence, contribute to consolidating the power of tech corporations, often at the expense of local communities and the environment. By integrating theories of state capitalism and techno-colonialism with critical platform scholarship, this article contributes to a deeper understanding of the political economy of platform capitalism, revealing the symbiotic yet exploitative nature of state-tech partnerships and urging a re-centring of the state’s role in facilitating corporate dominance over digital infrastructures and global platform capitalism.
Presenting Authors
Charis Papaevangelou is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Amsterdam, based at the Institute for Information Law as part of the interdisciplinary research programme “Public Values in the Algorithmic Society”, studying the implications of the novel EU platform regulatory framework for the relationship between news media organisations and platforms. His work is positioned at the nexus of media, political, cultural, and social sciences with a distinct interest in the material impact of technology governance on democracy.
Eugenia Siapera is a Professor of Digital Technology, Policy, and Society and serves as the co-Director of the UCD Centre for Digital Policy alongside Elizabeth Farries. Her research focuses on digital technologies and media, political communication, journalism, technology and social justice, platform governance, and the study of hate speech, racism, and misogyny. She has led multiple research projects as Principal Investigator, funded by organizations such as the IRC, SFI, and Horizon, and has contributed extensively to academic literature through numerous articles and book chapters. Her publications include Understanding New Media (2nd edition, Sage, 2018, with a 3rd edition forthcoming), Gender Hate Online (2019, Palgrave, co-edited with Debbie Ging), Radical Journalism (2023, Routledge, co-edited with Seamus Farrell and George Souvlis), Platforming Cancel Culture (2025, Routledge, co-edited with Paraic Kerrigan and Elizabeth Farries), and Automating Migration (forthcoming with Palgrave, co-edited with Mariangela Veikou). Eugenia is currently working on FORSEE (Forging Successful AI Applications for European Economy and Society), a Horizon Europe project.
About the Series
This talk is part of the series Behind the Scenes – Conversations on Empirical Platform Governance Research that invites scholars in this field to share their experiences and views, fostering community exchange about how we can study platform governance in this challenging context. It is hosted by the Lab “Platform Governance, Media, and Technology” (PGMT) at the Centre for Media, Communication and Information Research (ZeMKI), University of Bremen, and the Centre for Media and Journalism Studies, University of Groningen.
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