Draft:Assetization

Assetization is a concept in [[political economy]] and [[economic geography]] that describes the process by which things — including goods, services, knowledge, data, and natural resources — are transformed into [[Asset|assets]] that generate ongoing returns through ownership and control, rather than being sold as [[Commodity|commodities]] through one-time exchanges.{{cite journal |last=Langley |first=Paul |year=2021 |title=Assets and assetization in financialized capitalism |journal=Review of International Political Economy |volume=28 |issue=2 |doi=10.1080/09692290.2020.1830828}}

The term is closely related to [[financialization]], but is considered distinct in that it focuses specifically on the enclosure of resources to extract [[economic rent]] rather than on the broader expansion of financial markets.{{cite book |last1=Birch |first1=Kean |title=Assetization: Turning Things into Assets in Technoscientific Capitalism |last2=Muniesa |first2=Fabian |publisher=MIT Press |year=2020}}

== Definition ==
An asset, in this context, is defined as a resource controlled by an entity from which future economic benefits are expected to flow.{{cite journal |last=Birch |first=Kean |last2=Ward |first2=Callum |year=2024 |title=Assetization and the 'new asset geographies' |journal=Progress in Human Geography |doi=10.1177/20438206221130807}} Unlike commodities, whose value is realized at the point of sale, assets derive their value from the capitalization of expected future income streams. Assetization therefore involves constructing present value through forward-looking financial tools such as [[net present value]] calculations and [[discounted cash flow]] analysis.

Scholars identify three key characteristics of assets as distinct from commodities:{{cite journal |last=Langley |first=Paul |year=2021 |title=Assets and assetization in financialized capitalism |journal=Review of International Political Economy |volume=28 |issue=2 |doi=10.1080/09692290.2020.1830828}}

* They are legal objects that enable ownership and control, including the ability to limit access.
* They generate ongoing revenue through rentiership rather than one-time exchange.
* Their valuation is an ongoing social process rather than a fixed market price.

== Relationship to financialization ==
Assetization is closely related to but distinct from [[financialization]]. While financialization refers broadly to the increasing dominance of finance and financial logics in the economy, assetization focuses on the specific process of enclosing resources to collect rents that are then capitalized as property.{{cite journal |last=Birch |first=Kean |last2=Ward |first2=Callum |year=2024 |title=Assetization and the 'new asset geographies' |journal=Progress in Human Geography |doi=10.1177/20438206221130807}}

== Examples ==
A widely cited example of assetization is the transformation of the aerospace industry. Rather than selling jet engines outright, manufacturers such as [[Boeing]] have adopted service-based models in which engines are leased to airlines for an hourly fee, shifting the economic value of the product from a one-time commodity sale to a recurring, rent-generating asset.{{cite journal |last=Birch |first=Kean |last2=Ward |first2=Callum |year=2024 |title=Assetization and the 'new asset geographies' |journal=Progress in Human Geography |doi=10.1177/20438206221130807}}

Other domains in which assetization has been studied include:

* [[Housing]] and [[real estate]]
* [[Personal data]] and [[Platform economy|platform capitalism]]
* [[Intellectual property]] and [[knowledge economy]]
* [[Natural resources]] and environmental assets

== See also ==

* [[Financialization]]
* [[Commodification]]
* [[Economic rent]]
* [[Platform economy]]
* [[Capitalization]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}