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Information and Communication Technology offers powerful Web 2.0 tools that can benefit learners with different learning preferences. The rise of video streaming, the increased proliferation of ‘on demand’ televisual media and new smartphone streaming opportunities have generated a range of web-based media that may usefully support teachers and learners in accommodating these varied learning styles. At the same time, media streaming technologies such as YouTube have distinct drawbacks for students, teachers and their institutions, particularly in relation to appropriate content and the ethical issues around the uploading of student materials to a public repository.

Two studies are reported. In Study 1, two case studies of how teachers engaged students with a media-streaming system called Box of Broadcasts (BoB) are discussed using principles of design-based research. The result from the first case study indicated that BoB provided an improved efficiency for teachers who filmed students’ presentations in a second language. The second case study illustrated how the integration of BoB into their classroom teaching led a psychology teacher to think differently about students and the design and delivery of teaching and learning resources. In Study 2, the use of a qualitative semi-structured interview approach with eight teachers indicated that staff felt that BoB was beneficial in supporting pedagogic practice. Furthermore, staff highlighted the opportunities for dialogue about theory, reality and practice that video materials offered to students as added value. Key limitations for some staff in their use of BoB as a support for video-enriched pedagogic practice were the restricted level of available content on BoB, some difficulties relating to the skills required for creating and using clips and technical stability when using clips.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the ‘real’ world and substantially impacted the virtual world and thus the Internet ecosystem. It has caused a significant exogenous shock that offers a wealth of natural experiments and produced new data about broadband, clouds, and the Internet in times of crisis. In this chapter, we characterise and evaluate the evolving impact of the global COVID-19 crisis on traffic patterns and loads and the impact of those on Internet performance from multiple perspectives. While we place a particular focus on deriving insights into how we can better respond to crises and better plan for the post-COVID-19 ‘new normal’, we analyse the impact on and the responses by different actors of the Internet ecosystem across different jurisdictions. With a focus on the USA and Europe, we examine the responses of both public and private actors, with the latter including content and cloud providers, content delivery networks, and Internet service providers (ISPs). This chapter makes two contributions: first, we derive lessons learned for a future post-COVID-19 world to inform non-networking spheres and policy-making; second, the insights gained assist the networking community in better planning for the future.

Since the arrival of mass production, commodification has been plaguing markets – none more so than that for music. By separating production and consumption in space and time, commodification challenges the very conditions underlying economic exchange. This chapter explores authenticity as the institutional response to the commodification of music, rekindling the relationship between isolated market participants in the increasingly digitized world of music. Building upon the “Production of Culture” perspective, we unpack the commodification of music across five different institutional realms – (1) production, (2) consumption, (3) selection, (4) appropriation, and (5) classification – and provide a thoroughly relational account of authenticity as an institutional practice.

This Chapter is all about communication and the ways we are now able to reach out to others around the world from our personal computers or mobile devices, which were never available before. One might initially consider this section more in line with productivity tools instead of those impacting the digital humanities. I will, however, demonstrate that it is through these tools that the field is expanding, offering interesting ways in which scholars can communicate ideas with one another, share thoughts, research, and collaborate. Additionally, it is through the use of these tools that our ideas are being shared with students and interestingly how students are, in turn, reciprocating our efforts. The chapter focuses on video broadcasting tools, audio conferencing, audiocasting, and collaboration applications, offering examples of how they can be used in a classroom setting.

Digital technology has given rise to new economic models such as sharing economy and business structures such as omnichannel. Technological advancements also enable firms to build a one-on-one relationship with customers. This chapter covers the current business practices that involve the use of digital tools to develop and manage customer relationships. They are omnichannel marketing, user-generated content, interactive content, live videos – live streaming, co-creation marketing and influencers marketing. The chapter also identifies emerging trends pertinent to digital marketing and relationship development. Artificial intelligence (AI) applications such as virtual assistants and programmatic advertising are predicted to be at the heart of digital marketing in the near future. In addition, though still in the early stage of development, blockchain technology has the potential to improve the transparency of transactions and data protection, thereby increasing trust and relationship quality. The use of immersive technologies such as augmented and virtual realities are expected to gain significantly more popular in the next few years. Finally, these trends can be further facilitated by 5G, the fifth generation of mobile technology, heralding a new era of digital communication and transforming the customer experience.