The amount of data generated and the overall reliance on internet services swelled because of the pandemic. Because technology – specifically blackb

Technology self determination milestones in 2020 — Shift Print

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2021-05-22 15:00:09

The amount of data generated and the overall reliance on internet services swelled because of the pandemic. Because technology – specifically blackbox systems – continues to affect political, industrial and personal areas of modern life, resulted in push backs by citizen and state actors in Europe that will play a key role in potentially rewriting the future of the internet.

In the 9-12 months since lockdown and social distancing measures were introduced around the world, usage of online government, education and collaboration services grew to unprecedented levels. E-commerce alone grew more from March to April 2020 than in the previous 7 years. The high demand for streaming services pushed Netflix and YouTube to lower the video quality in Europe.

These changes and the continued explosion of data generated as a result will most likely be structural, not temporary. Because of this, the already present distrust for big tech platforms (on privacy, security or political interference grounds) in Europe might also develop in unknown ways. Here comes retrospective to try and understand where it might go.