Do not miss this ordonomic reply to our critics: Why social contract theory favors commercial over cooperative platforms in the sharing economy

This discussion paper responds to the critique of our 2022 article "Ordo-Responsibility in the Sharing Economy: A Social Contracts Perspective" published in Business Ethics Quarterly. Ghirlanda and Sacconi (2024) argue that a properly understood version of constitutional contractarianism would favor platform cooperatives over commercial platforms. We respectfully disagree. Drawing on the ordonomic framework and Buchanan's contractarianism, we argue that commercial platforms provide a more efficient and legitimate governance model. Our reply addresses key methodological misunderstandings of social contract theory and substantiates our position with conceptual reasoning and empirical insights.