For example, the video game industry has long been working to blur the line between labor and play in their own ranks by recruiting fans as beta testers for games that are about to be released. Companies routinely emphasize the benefits and the prestige associated with early access: alpha and beta testers are said to have the ear of game makers, to be influential in shaping the final product. Similar rhetoric abounds in recruitment materials aimed at young workers looking to break into the industry.
Mel Stanfill and Megan Condis, Editorial: Fandom and/as labor http://ift.tt/1sxoYCp
[QUOTE] From Mel Stanfill and Megan Condis, Editorial: Fandom and/as labor