James A. Danowski

Communication and technology

Countless communication media have been developed throughout the history, ranging from handwriting to movable types press, from telegraph to telephone and radio, from photo to cinema and TV...This volume focuses on the latest (r)evolution, analyzing in detail digital communication technologies and especially the internet. Most recent developments are approached from a theoretical point of view, as well as within different communication contexts.

27. New media in travel and tourism communication: Toward a new paradigm

This chapter discusses the advent and the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on the travel and tourism industry. It first reviews and highlights the most important milestones in the last two decades that changed tourism communication, focusing on three main areas of development: the persuasive nature of tourism websites, social media conversations, and mobile computing. It is then argued that these technological developments have led to the transformation of tourism that is best characterized by the development of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the notion ‘travelling in the network.’ The chapter concludes that this ambient networking of the various tourism systems will further transform the tourism experience and therefore lead to a new paradigm for tourism communication within an increasingly ICT-support environment.

5. Communication in video games: From players to player communities

Digital games research and communication studies intertwine at several points. Gaming, and play in general, is a social activity. For those motivated to participate, digital gaming and online game worlds offer near endless ways for self-expression and socializing. This chapter looks at questions of social interaction within the realm of online multiplayer games. The topics introduced proceed from motivations of individual players to the social dynamics of player groups and communities to exploring games as communication systems and platforms. The way players utilize the affordances provided to them in online games and gamelike virtual worlds vary. What is typical is that players often self-organize into what can be called collaborative groups or communities. At the heart of these groups are emergent negotiations of shared norms and rules, a shared purpose. In combination with game mechanics, these negotiations create a rich window of opportunity for creative human interaction. Throughout the chapter examples related to theoretical issues, methodology, and future research directions are provided.