A new anti-enshittification advertising campaign is using dark humour to highlight how digital products and services are deliberately made worse over time. The videos feature a bearded Nordic character known as the Enshittificator, whose stated purpose is to degrade the quality of everyday products, alongside a pale figure of Death dressed in a black robe and holding a scythe.
The two characters form a business relationship dedicated to making every conceivable product worse, from televisions and toothbrushes to smartphone storage. The campaign uses this comically bleak framing to draw attention to the pressures that shape modern consumer technology.
What Enshittification Means
The term enshittification was popularised in 2022 by author and activist Cory Doctorow, and its cultural rise earned it a place in Merriam-Webster’s slang hub. It describes a deliberate process designed by companies to maximise profit. It begins by luring users to a product or service and making it so appealing that they become dependent on it. The next stage involves hiding basic features behind a paywall, reducing overall quality and extracting as much revenue as possible while providing minimal value.
The videos illustrate the concept through planned obsolescence. They point out that products with long lifespans, such as the famously durable Nokia 3310, which makes a cameo appearance, only generate revenue once. To sustain a profitable business model, the characters argue, companies must use low-quality materials, ensure products cannot be repaired and stop issuing updates. “Look at all the companies that used to make solid products,” the Enshittificator says. “Where are they now?” Death replies, “Dead.”
The Breaking Free Initiative
The videos are produced by the Norwegian Consumer Council, an independent, government-funded nonprofit that advocates for consumer rights. They form part of its Breaking Free initiative, a multipronged policy approach intended to make technology work in favour of consumers rather than against them.
The first video was released in February, concluding with the Enshittificator involved in a car accident because he had not paid a subscription for his braking system. The second video, released on YouTube in mid-September, sees him meet Death in hospital, after which he wears a yellow hazmat suit to stay alive and the two enter their partnership.
The campaign addresses paid subscription models and planned obsolescence, which pushes consumers to buy newer devices. It also comments on rising prices, declining reliability, questionable advertising tactics and the sidestepping of consumer protection rights. Doctorow collaborated with the nonprofit to help launch the series.
