Rent Seeking and the City : The Case of Urban Screens
Melgaço, Lorena LU
(2026)
In Journal of Urban Technology
- Abstract
Digital technology has become an integral aspect of contemporary cities, especially with the rise of smart city initiatives. Over the past two decades, researchers and practitioners have studied the potential of large public screens, also known as urban screens, in transforming public spaces and shaping the urban experience. This article contributes to the debate by discussing urban screens in their entwinement with the production of capitalist space. It proposes a conceptual model to explain how different actors, including property owners, public screen owners, and brand holders, collaborate to realize class monopoly rent (CRM), using Times Square as a case study. The article also discusses the challenges associated with urban screen... (More)
Digital technology has become an integral aspect of contemporary cities, especially with the rise of smart city initiatives. Over the past two decades, researchers and practitioners have studied the potential of large public screens, also known as urban screens, in transforming public spaces and shaping the urban experience. This article contributes to the debate by discussing urban screens in their entwinement with the production of capitalist space. It proposes a conceptual model to explain how different actors, including property owners, public screen owners, and brand holders, collaborate to realize class monopoly rent (CRM), using Times Square as a case study. The article also discusses the challenges associated with urban screen by presenting Nightscreen gasometer in Germany, Federation Square in Australia, and Ituita in Brazil. The exploratory nature of the article invites further research to better understand urban screens as contested elements in the production of just cities.
(Less)
- author
- Melgaço, Lorena
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2026
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- keywords
- class monopoly rent (CMR), informational rent, smart cities, socio-spatial transformation, urban screens
- in
- Journal of Urban Technology
- publisher
- Routledge
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105033399130
- ISSN
- 1063-0732
- DOI
- 10.1080/10630732.2025.2605620
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 061abb31-38d0-48a2-bdf4-311eaaf77700
- date added to LUP
- 2026-04-20 10:36:12
- date last changed
- 2026-04-20 10:36:51
@article{061abb31-38d0-48a2-bdf4-311eaaf77700,
abstract = {{<p>Digital technology has become an integral aspect of contemporary cities, especially with the rise of smart city initiatives. Over the past two decades, researchers and practitioners have studied the potential of large public screens, also known as urban screens, in transforming public spaces and shaping the urban experience. This article contributes to the debate by discussing urban screens in their entwinement with the production of capitalist space. It proposes a conceptual model to explain how different actors, including property owners, public screen owners, and brand holders, collaborate to realize class monopoly rent (CRM), using Times Square as a case study. The article also discusses the challenges associated with urban screen by presenting Nightscreen gasometer in Germany, Federation Square in Australia, and Ituita in Brazil. The exploratory nature of the article invites further research to better understand urban screens as contested elements in the production of just cities.</p>}},
author = {{Melgaço, Lorena}},
issn = {{1063-0732}},
keywords = {{class monopoly rent (CMR); informational rent; smart cities; socio-spatial transformation; urban screens}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Routledge}},
series = {{Journal of Urban Technology}},
title = {{Rent Seeking and the City : The Case of Urban Screens}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10630732.2025.2605620}},
doi = {{10.1080/10630732.2025.2605620}},
year = {{2026}},
}