ABSTRACT
In the countries of the Global North, each person, to a greater or lesser degree, has become configured as a data subject. Leisure cultures and practices are imbricated within digital and data practices and assemblages. Indeed, digital technologies are beginning to transform many areas of life into leisure pursuits in unprecedented ways, expanding the purview of leisure studies in several interesting dimensions. In some cases, people may choose to generate digital data; in most other cases, they are collected and used by others, often without people’s knowledge or consent. These data have become highly valuable as elements of the global knowledge economy, whether aggregated and used as big data-sets or used to reveal insights into individuals’ habits, behaviours and preferences. Fitness tracker companies offer employers discounted wearable devices for their employees so that corporate ‘wellness’ programmes can be put in place in which fitness data sharing and competition are encouraged among employees.
