# Why? ## Network Effects for Social Data, not for Platform Monopolies The distributed web, as in protocols like Holochain, enable greater user autonomy and control over data. The things that client-server web models are known for, like algorithmic discovery, driving tons of engagement, and matching people and goods all over the world, remain challenges for technologists and communities. > *Neighbourhoods delivers the benefits of network effects to individuals and communities instead of platforms.* The success of the distributed web depends on its ability to do great things that the siloed, corporate web can't. Network science shows us that trust builds through transitive associations. So, the more vast the environment for meaningful reputation data to be carried across group contexts, the more freedom of interaction and overall utility there is on the distributed web. Enabling a plurality of reputation systems also helps avoid centralized control and limits the harms individual reputation systems can impose on individuals. > *Building bridges between Neighbourhoods is what it's all about.* --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.neighbourhoods.network/why.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.