Convergence and Fragmentation: Media Technology and the Information Society (Intellect Books - Changing Media, Changing Europe)

The European media landscape is changing so quickly that critics and scholars can barely keep pace with new developments. On the cusp of the latest media innovations, Convergence and Fragmentation brings together specialists from the humanities and social sciences in fifteen countries to analyze the technological, economic, and political trends sweeping Europe. The diverse group of contributors also assesses the effectiveness of models used to explain the changing media environment in this authoritative collection. Introduction : Unity In Diversity / Peter Ludes -- Culture And Technology. Global And European Information Society / Maria Heller ; Epolicies In Europe : A Human-centric And Culturally Biased Approach / Ursula Maier-rabler -- Techno-pleasure. The Cultural Value Of Games : Computer Games And Cultural Policy In Europe / Rune Klevjer ; Learning And Entertainment In Museums : A Case Study / Ed Tan ... [et Al.] -- Ict And Learning. For A Communications Approach To The Use Of Ict In Education / Bernard Miège ; E-learning : A Knowledge Theoretical Approach / Lars Qvortrup ; 'virtual' And 'flexible' University Learning / Knut Lundby & Päivi Hovi-wasastjerna -- Power, Technology And Policies. Media Governance : Valuable Instrument Of Risk Discourse For Media Ownership Concentration / Werner A. Meier ; Telecom Liberalization : Distributive Challenges And National Differences / Tanja Storsul ; Public Service Television's Mission In France : An Analysis Of Media-policy Instruments, Including The Use Of The Internet As A New Distribution Channel / Marcel Machill. Edited By Peter Ludes. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Convergence under pressure leads to fragmentation. Therefore, the role of the newest information and communication technologies and formats in a changing Europe must be analysed not only in terms of optimistic market projections but also in terms of realistic trends toward complementary fragmentations. The exclusion of majorities of the populations of most European countries from technologically advanced and expensive consumer devices means that we should take into account the shifting conflicts of inclusion and exclusion. Continuity and discontinuity in the development of media technology requires us to leave behind a number of traditional notions, methods and data used for national developments and international comparisons. The contradictory tendencies of convergence (implying a similarity and increasing unity of experience) and fragmentation (implying a growing differentiation of experience) are tied to general aspects of this development and to the question of whether we are really moving into a new European information society The European media landscape is changing so quickly that critics and scholars can barely keep pace with new developments. On the cusp of the latest media innovations, this book brings together specialists from the humanities and social sciences in fifteen countries to analyze the technological, economic, and political trends sweeping Europe. The diverse group of contributors also assesses the effectiveness of models used to explain the changing media environment in this authoritative collection. It presents a collection of articles from media specialists working in humanities and social sciences from 15 European countries. The articles offer evidence on technological, economic, social and cultural trends in order to analysis the current developments in European media, and in turn cultural changes in Europe A collection of articles which analyze the technological, economic, and political trends sweeping Europe. It also assesses the effectiveness of models used to explain the changing media environment Convergence and Fragmentation brings together specialists from the humanities and social sciences in fifteen countries to analyse the technological, economic, and political trends sweeping Europe.