The Invisualities of Capture in Amazon’s Logistical Operations

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

This paper explores the status of visuality in surveillance capitalism by considering its role in the management of Amazon’s logistical operations. Whereas Amazon is often portrayed as being at the forefront of developments in surveillance associated with face recognition technologies, a focus on its logistical operations highlights the more mundane role of the barcode scan. The barcode is considered a calm image, central to the operation of capture in the warehouse and beyond. Logistics is here marked by invisualities, wherein visuality is operationalised to optimise logistical flows of data, things and people, rather than geared towards visual forms of surveillance. These invisualities mean that power is exercised primarily through the scan as capture, with power characterised as operational and environmental. Recent developments in logistics towards augmented video surveillance and its associated networked images must also be assessed in the context of this mode of power and its economy.
Translated title of the contributionDie Unsichtbarkeit der Erfassung in den logistischen Abläufen von Amazon
Original languageEnglish
JournalDigital Culture & Society
Volume7
Issue number2
Pages (from-to)185-202
Number of pages18
ISSN2364-2114
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.08.2022

Bibliographical note

© 2022 by transcript Verlag

DOI

Recently viewed

Publications

  1. Remote sensing data
  2. Learning spaces in multi-stakeholder initiatives
  3. Perceptions of science, science communication, and climate change attitudes in 68 countries - the TISP dataset
  4. How Founders Harness Tensions in Hybrid Venture Development
  5. Complex Trait-Treatment-Interaction analysis
  6. Handling Cytostatic Drugs
  7. EVALUATION FORM FOR TRAINEES AS A HUMAN-RESOURCE DATA INSTRUMENT - SUGGESTIONS FOR ITS CONSTRUCTION AND RESULTS OF AN EMPIRICAL-STUDY
  8. A note on the firm size - export relationship
  9. Exploring Difficult History Lessons, Identity Construction, the Artistic Expansion of Sitcom Storytelling Tools in the Black-ish Episode, "Juneteenth"
  10. Tree diversity and nectar composition affect arthropod visitors on extrafloral nectaries in a diversity experiment
  11. Introduction: Manufacturing as a challenge in Industry 4.0 process
  12. Determinants of mandatory goodwill disclosure
  13. Where there is no World and no Epoch
  14. The Routledge Handbook of Pragmatics
  15. The efficiency of German public theaters: a stochastic frontier analysis approach
  16. The 1986 Principles Relating to Remote Sensing of the Earth from Outer Space (RS Princi­ples)
  17. Variational Pragmatics
  18. What if this was a piece of art
  19. Advances in Laser Positioning of Machine Vision System and Their Impact on 3D Coordinates Measurement
  20. Inductance Estimation Using an EKF for the Robust Control of PMSMs in the Presence of Saturation
  21. Employing complementary multivariate methods for a designed nontarget LC-HRMS screening of a wastewater-influenced river
  22. A trait-based framework linking the soil metabolome to plant–soil feedbacks
  23. Towards greener and sustainable ionic liquids using naturally occurring and nature-inspired pyridinium structures
  24. "Konfrontative Pädagogik"
  25. The challenges of gamifying CSR communication
  26. Time Use -