Sharing a changing society

The rise in sharing is a reflection in the changing needs of society. Vrumi is expecting that by 2020 half the workforce in the UK will be freelancers. While many of these may usually work from home, holding a meeting in the bedroom isn't unprofessional. At the moment, nearly a third of bookings are made by "digital nomads" looking for working spaces, they use other people's houses during the day, using the tea and coffee, toilet, Wi-Fi and electricity.

While strange at first, sharers become accustomed to the idea and the behaviour becomes to feel more normal. As a result, the sharing experience is gradually changing attitudes in society and this reinforces behaviour. As An Haifeng, a 27-year-old film school graduate says, "Before using Mobike, I thought only poor people rode bikes and the richer ones bought cars. Now I think riding is cooler than driving" According to customer research, 49 per cent of Cycle Hire members say that the scheme has prompted them to start cycling in their spare time. It's a side effect not missed by the companies that use this as evidence that their business benefits health and the environment by reducing smog and congestion.

Another change noted by Lee, a regular Airbnb user taking a year out to travel around Asia, is that because many of the services require users to leave reviews, it has made us all into critics. He says that "the constant commenting and reviewing means that when you ask someone, about a restaurant or hotel, they often describe it in a way that sounds like on-line feedback."