Semiotics in music streaming environments: mind, learning and continuity

Abstract

Based on the notions of agency (Deleuze and Guattari) and semiosis (Peirce), this paper discusses a study of the hybrid forms of interaction between interfaces and human agents in the music streaming environments LastFM, Grooveshark, and Deezer. The Peircean model of semiosis is taken as the conceptual framework to explain how the hybrid forms of agency interact at the interface between humans and machines. This paper proposes the notion of “semiotic agency” as a conceptual tool in the study of the learning processes whereby machines acquire knowledge about human preferences and decisions and are able to transform them into recommendations. The relationship of continuity between human minds and interface agents is discussed from the Peircean perspective of synechism and semiosis as a continuous process.