ABSTRACT
Over the past twenty years, personal computers wired to the internet have become a natural part, for some even the backbone, of how people across the globe plan and execute work and leisure activities in everyday life. The lived experience with and monetization of the internet is still taking shape, partly owing to the fact that technology does not stand still. With the advent and rapid growth of platforms for mobile internet use, internet services have become platform independent with optional digital access devices such as smartphones, laptops, and PDAs. At the same time, internet services are increasingly made interoperable through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces), so that users experience seamless interfaces from one service to another through single logins, and companies and public organizations alike increasingly come to rely on digital data in their modeling of services and business innovation. Under the heading ‘the ubiquitous internet,’ this mobile, platform-independent, and interoperable character of the internet is the focus of this book. We examine the ubiquitous internet as a multisided and complex phenomenon. It manifests itself in diffusion patterns of ubiquitous internet devices, a diverse set of cultural practices of digital media use, and a whole range of sociopolitical issues across domains, including data protection, business innovation, and standardization processes.
