Search results
1 – 10 of over 38000Yan Ma, Cai Minqiang and Li Yun
The purpose of this paper is to define the Internet as a virtual space supported by technologies and presented in the form of socioeconomic relations from the perspective of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to define the Internet as a virtual space supported by technologies and presented in the form of socioeconomic relations from the perspective of political economy. The Internet space is a unique virtual commodity different from ordinary commodities and has the following effect characteristics: super replicability, space- and time-transcendence, open-source shareability and reality–virtuality transformation.
Design/methodology/approach
Internet space can also be imagined as a piece of virtual land. Internet space can be deemed as a piece of virtual land and its value can be divided into labor value and virtual value. The pricing model of virtual value is mainly determined by the gain and discount rate and this value comes from the transfer and markup of social value. In the context of the Internet Plus era, Internet space has become an essential economic factor that influences human economic activities.
Findings
Therefore, it is of practical significance and theoretical value to introduce Internet space as an economic variable into the framework of economic theory. The realistic logic of Internet space is to influence human economic behaviors with the combination of information binding.
Originality/value
The theoretical mechanism is to have an impact on the micro-market price by changing market relations from two-dimensional to three-dimensional. Its path to functioning at the macro level is to influence economic behaviors by changing the expectations of investment and consumption, resulting in new economic trends.
Details
Keywords
Angus Laing, Terry Newholm and Gill Hogg
The internet driven information revolution is frequently cited as one of the key drivers (re‐)shaping contemporary consumption. In particular, the internet has been seen as…
Abstract
Purpose
The internet driven information revolution is frequently cited as one of the key drivers (re‐)shaping contemporary consumption. In particular, the internet has been seen as disrupting established conventions in professional services. Popularly, it has been viewed as a liberating medium, a mechanism by which consumers and citizens have been able to challenge the authority of the professional establishment. Yet for consumers, the internet can equally be viewed as generating new uncertainties and challenges in terms of negotiating a new settlement with professionals and reconfiguring the service encounter. The purpose of this paper is to explore experiences of consumers with the use of internet derived information in respect of complex professional services and the impact of such information utilisation on the format of the service encounter.
Design/methodology/approach
Empirical data is generated through interviews with professionals (n=24) and consumer focus groups (n=10/53).
Findings
The paper argues that the multi‐faceted nature of the internet creates informational “spaces” which present both opportunities and threats to consumers in renegotiating the service encounter. Balancing the paradoxes created by these informational spaces is at the core of the challenge confronting contemporary service consumers. Irrespective of the nature of that space, the effect is to create a driver for change, challenging the established practices of both consumer and professional to reshape the service encounter.
Research limitations/implications
Focus group research does not enable a judgement about the prevalence or distribution of behaviours among consumers. Nevertheless, this paper advances understanding of contemporary consumption practices and provides a new perspective on nature of consumer utilisation of information within the consumption process.
Practical implications
It is inevitable that professionals and service organisations will be required to respond to a complex and rapidly evolving set of consumer behaviours and rethink approaches to the delivery of professional services.
Originality/value
The paper addresses an emergent phenomenon and provides unique insights into the changing dynamics of consumption practices in the contemporary knowledge economy.
Details
Keywords
Public spaces are typically for everyone, and can be used by anyone, but governments control how they may be used. Examples of public spaces include roads, public squares, parks…
Abstract
Public spaces are typically for everyone, and can be used by anyone, but governments control how they may be used. Examples of public spaces include roads, public squares, parks, beaches, public libraries, and the Internet. These spaces can be used for a variety of reasons, such as giving people a place to assemble and engage in free speech. Governments cannot avoid applying social control on the usage of public spaces, and their limitations often lead to controversy (whether for being excessive, insufficient, or both).
This chapter discusses the various ways governments apply social control around the world in regards to their public spaces, and how that inevitably intersects with and influences the usage of public spaces. Examples are taken from around the globe, from Tiananmen Square (Beijing, China) to Times Square (New York City, United States), from the American South before the Civil Rights Movement and South Africa during Apartheid, and in various countries impacted by the Arab Spring uprisings.
Details
Keywords
Steve Conway, Ian Combe and David Crowther
Whilst some authors have portrayed the Internet as a powerful tool for business and political institutions, others have highlighted the potential of this technology for those…
Abstract
Whilst some authors have portrayed the Internet as a powerful tool for business and political institutions, others have highlighted the potential of this technology for those vying to constrain or counter‐balance the power of organizations, through e‐collectivism and on‐line action. What appears to be emerging is a contested space that has the potential to simultaneously enhance the power of organizations, whilst also acting as an enabling technology for the empowerment of grass‐root networks. In this struggle, organizations are fighting for the retention of “old economy” positions, as well as the development of “new economy” power‐bases. In realizing these positions, organizations and institutions are strategizing and manoeuvering in order to shape on‐line networks and communications. For example, the on‐line activities of individuals can be contained through various technological means, such as surveillance, and the structuring of the virtual world through the use of portals and “walled gardens”. However, loose groupings of individuals are also strategizing to ensure there is a liberation of their communication paths and practices, and to maintain the potential for mobilization within and across traditional boundaries. In this article, the unique nature and potential of the Internet are evaluated, and the struggle over this contested virtual space is explored.
Details
Keywords
The study aims to elaborate the author’s basic viewpoints on how economics should view the Internet from four aspects.
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to elaborate the author’s basic viewpoints on how economics should view the Internet from four aspects.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper reviews the existing literature on this topic, and summarizes key findings and conclusions of these researches.
Findings
The findings include four major contradictions in economics brought by the Internet, and 12 new changes in economics that needs to be addressed.
Originality/value
This paper provides a clear summary of existing studies on economics’ views of the internet and a prospect for future internet economy research.
Details
Keywords
Saeidi Ramyani Saleh, Ehsan Mousavi Khaneghah, Nosratollah Shadnosh and Amirhosein Reyhani ShowkatAbad
This paper aims to propose a mathematical model for describing and clarifying the relationships among the indicators governing the social values of special customers in…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to propose a mathematical model for describing and clarifying the relationships among the indicators governing the social values of special customers in business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce systems. This mathematical model is also able to describe the degree of adaptability of e-commerce systems to the social values of specific clients, and commercial firms are able to use the parameters described in this paper to increase the versatility and has the power to trade with special customers in different areas.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, while analyzing the issue of trading from the point of view of the customer as an element of trading, the affecting factors the trading space have been extracted. These affecting factors are categorized in three major groups: culture, technology and customers. This classification is based on the e-commerce and developing the traditional commerce. Using the mapping functions, the effects of each element in these three spaces on the concept of social values have been analyzed. The result of this analysis is the mathematical model governing each parameter and its semantic relation with the concept of social value.
Findings
The presence of a mathematical model between the indicators influencing the model adaptability and social values space allows e-commerce system designers to be able to make decisions on the adaptability of the model with a quantitative approach. To examine the proposed mathematical models, important frameworks and patterns in the field of e-commerce have been analyzed with an Islamic approach, as one of the adaptations of B2C e-commerce model.
Research limitations/implications
Regarding the innovation of the work, the case has been made, and the concept of social value and the model governing the elements of social values in this paper, in a B2C e-commerce model, has been discussed in general; the problem is parametric solved.
Practical implications
One of the key concepts in commerce is the ability of the commerce model to adapt to the requirements of special customers. This is more important in costumer-based e-commerce models. In these types of systems, if the commerce cannot match the customer’s characteristics, it will not be accepted and used by customers. This is especially more important in the field of social values for customers.
Originality/value
In this paper, a mathematical model is presented to examine the adaptability of e-commerce systems to the social values of special customers. In examining this model, the relationship between each element affecting the social value of specific customers and the factors affecting trade has been studied.
Details
Keywords
The increasing availability and popularity of ways to capture personal memories using technologies such as digital cameras is beginning to alter the way in which personal memory…
Abstract
The increasing availability and popularity of ways to capture personal memories using technologies such as digital cameras is beginning to alter the way in which personal memory images are produced, retained and circulated. Unlike the analog technologies, it is now possible to create an immediately available presence on the Internet. When examined from the perspective of voice, this phenomenon expands the potential of creating personal history narratives that could be collated together to produce a non‐institutional history of an era. This paper explores the ways in which the digital technologies can facilitate the production of such histories and what the technologies could do the sense of presence of an individual in the realm of the virtual.
Details
Keywords
This paper aims to explore the extent to which the internet has created new opportunities for Iranian women in Tehran. It analyses both challenges and opportunities offered to…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the extent to which the internet has created new opportunities for Iranian women in Tehran. It analyses both challenges and opportunities offered to Iranian women by the internet as a means of economic empowerment.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopts a qualitative approach and based on 13 semi-structured interviews with female internet users between the ages of 20 and 55 years. The qualitative data was collected through open-ended questions in face-to-face interviews. This study uses ethnography as a research tool to explore the question of whether the internet has made a difference in the economic lives of Iranian women.
Findings
Result reveals that the internet and working online have significant impact on the economic lives of Tehrani women by enabling them to engage in new forms of online business. This technology is being used for online advertising to attract more clients, to establish business contacts with peers and to manage households positively.
Research limitations/implications
The result of the research cannot be regarded as applicable to all women in Iran, as the opportunity to access online economic activities is only available to those women who are highly trained and well-educated. In addition, the result of the research may not reflect the barriers that women from different social classes and ethnic groups have faced in the achievement of economic empowerment online.
Practical implications
The study highlights that due to a generally lack of computer proficiency, women in these areas are unable to effectively maximise their participation in the online economic sphere. This barrier must be removed by enhancing women’s computer literacy and ICT (information, communication and technologies) and establishing development networking programme centres for internet skills training.
Originality/value
The internet has created opportunity for Iranian women to expand their participation in the online economic sphere. However, research in the field of online economic activities in Iran, especially concerning women working online, is scant. The key contribution of this paper is to fill the gap in this area of study, in particular offering insights into the ways in which women use the internet to overcome the boundaries of physical space and become empowered.
Details
Keywords
Breno Maciel Souza Reis, Liana Gross Furini and Sandra Mara Garcia Henriques
This chapter aims to investigate the uses and appropriations of mobile digital technologies and networks through an examination of their popular manifestations in Brazil. We take…
Abstract
This chapter aims to investigate the uses and appropriations of mobile digital technologies and networks through an examination of their popular manifestations in Brazil. We take a phenomenologically informed hermeneutics approach to understand the nature of social interactions vis-à-vis mobile digital technologies in daily life. The multimodal strategy explores based on documents and quantitative data published by Brazilian research institutes and the press. In addition, using an autoethnographic approach, the authors’ direct observations also provide a contextual framework. Findings suggest that mobile devices and networks were employed as protest tools for individuals and social groups. This finding suggests the emergence of new forms of social organizations and the appropriation of mobile technology as a tool for citizen empowerment and cyber-activism that takes place both in virtual and physical environments in Brazil. These appropriations had direct implications for political protests and changed how they have been organized in Brazil since then. Mobile technologies have enhanced and multiplied possibilities for social interaction, information sharing, and media broadcasting, allowing for the questioning of traditional media and the content provided by them. This research provides a foundation for future analysis about the appropriation of digital technologies specifically related to their use as civic media that is applicable beyond Brazil, given that these technologies are spread in different contexts and countries.
Details