Typology of Web 2.0 spheres: Understanding the cultural dimensions of social media spaces

It has taken the past decade to commonly acknowledge that online space is tethered to real place. From euphoric conceptualizations of social media spaces as a novel, unprecedented and revolutionary entity, the dust has settled, allowing for talk of boundaries and ties to real-world settings. Metaphors have been instrumental in this pursuit, shaping perceptions and affecting actions within this extended structural realm. Specifically, they have been harnessed to architect Web 2.0 spaces, be it chatrooms, electronic frontiers, homepages, or information highways for policy and practice. While metaphors are pervasive in addressing and

Towards an audiovisual media services directive: an analysis of the Commission's proposal. Egmont European Affairs Publication, 2006

The current “Television without frontiers” (TVWF) Directive constitutes the basic regulation of the European Community’s broadcasting policy. Adopted in 1989, the Directive provides for the free movement of television broadcasting services in the Union as it requires Member States to guarantee the freedom of reception and transmission on their territory of television programmes which originate from other Member States. Consequently, the Directive harmonized certain national programming and advertising rules. With the aim of protecting the European TV market, it also introduced broadcasting quota for European and independent works. In the light of the rapid developments in the television sector, a revision of the Directive took place in 1997. Since 2002, the Commission is engaged in a new revision process in order to modernise the rules on televised services. It has also examined the possibility to extend the scope of these rules to cover all services which have an audiovisual content, including new media services delivered by Internet, email, mobile communication, etc. On 13 December 2005, the Commission eventually adopted the legislative proposal for the revision of the Directive. The aim of this paper is to analyse the Commission’s strategy in reviewing the regulatory framework. First, we will shortly discuss and evaluate the underlying principles of the present Directive. We will subsequently take a look at the elements which require a revision of the Directive. Third, we will examine the Commission’s proposal and we will conclude with some critical comments

Audiovisual Media Services in the EU. Next Generation Approach or Old Wine in New Barrels?

In this article, we analyse how the European legislator is currently responding to some of the recent changes in the media and communications environment with the adoption of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive. What is the European approach to address the challenges brought about by the technological changes in the audiovisual sector? How is the EU devising a future model for content regulation? The article also puts forward a number of critical remarks that should be taken into account in the framework of the debate on future content regulation, indicating where the AVMS Directive falls short.content regulation, audiovisual media services.

Photo-responsive graphene and carbon nanotubes to control and tackle biological systems

Photo-responsive multifunctional nanomaterials are receiving considerable attention for biological applications because of their unique properties. The functionalization of the surface of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene, among other carbon based nanomaterials, with molecular switches that exhibit reversible transformations between two or more isomers in response to different kind of external stimuli, such as electromagnetic radiation, temperature and pH, has allowed the control of the optical and electrical properties of the nanomaterial. Light-controlled molecular switches, such as azobenzene and spiropyran, have attracted a lot of attention for nanomaterial's functionalization because of the remote modulation of their physicochemical properties using light stimulus. The enhanced properties of the hybrid materials obtained from the coupling of carbon based nanomaterials with light-responsive switches has enabled the fabrication of smart devices for various biological applications, including drug delivery, bioimaging and nanobiosensors. In this review, we highlight the properties of photo-responsive carbon nanomaterials obtained by the conjugation of CNTs and graphene with azobenzenes and spiropyrans molecules to investigate biological systems, devising possible future directions in the field