The argument is not that these other structures are perfect or free of problems, only that they are better for society on average than equity financed for-profit companies.
Wikipedia and Mozilla are two examples. And yeah, they both have the challenges of large organizations - there's plenty to criticize in both. But to say that they wouldn't have these problems if they were for-profits is to simply ignore the universe of for-profit companies.
Want a company ignoring their user base and going off on crazy side projects? I give you Meta. Want a company that steadfastly ignores its users and regularly does things directly harmful to them (including paying customers) with complete lack of accountability? I give you Google.
And I would still argue that if you take the totality of impact of Mozilla and Wikipedia it is orders of magnitude more positive than any of the private companies I just listed off. Wikipedia is one of the best things on the internet. What ever governance struggles they are happening right now the public good they have done and are continuing to do is immeasurable. And it's pure public good. You cannot say the same thing about any private companies that could be considered their impact peer.
Wikipedia and Mozilla are two examples. And yeah, they both have the challenges of large organizations - there's plenty to criticize in both. But to say that they wouldn't have these problems if they were for-profits is to simply ignore the universe of for-profit companies.
Want a company ignoring their user base and going off on crazy side projects? I give you Meta. Want a company that steadfastly ignores its users and regularly does things directly harmful to them (including paying customers) with complete lack of accountability? I give you Google.
And I would still argue that if you take the totality of impact of Mozilla and Wikipedia it is orders of magnitude more positive than any of the private companies I just listed off. Wikipedia is one of the best things on the internet. What ever governance struggles they are happening right now the public good they have done and are continuing to do is immeasurable. And it's pure public good. You cannot say the same thing about any private companies that could be considered their impact peer.