Understanding Broadband Infrastructure Development in Remote and Rural Communities – a Staged and Reflexive Approach

Access to broadband telecommunication infrastructure is important for both urban and rural areas. In urban areas market forces ensures access to service providers. In many rural and remote areas this is not the case. Local actors need to initiate the development of the infrastructure. This paper contributes to the development of a staged model for infrastructure development. We explore how local stakeholders have initiated and sustained the development of broadband access in rural and remote areas of Norway. Our conclusion is that the model is relevant in a Norwegian context. However we see the need to extend and strengthen it with elements of local reflexive processes taking context, feedback, learning, and global change forces into account. In initiating a timely development to meet local needs it is important to have a staged reflexive approach.  Such a model provides a path of development that allows local and regional initiatives to aggregate and grow

Overtourism, optimisation, and destination performance indicators: a case study of activities in Fjord Norway

Many global tourist destinations have experienced growth in arrivals. This has triggered various conflicts in destinations and sparked debates as to how to deal with what is increasingly referred to as ‘overtourism’. Most destination marketing organisations (DMOs) pursue strategies to stimulate arrivals even further. Pro-growth discourses are reinforced by lead bodies such as the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO). However, maximisation strategies based on higher numbers of tourists increasingly cause conflicts with local residents, whereas simultaneously undermining climate change mitigation pledges as negotiated in the Paris Agreement. New approaches to destination management based on optimisation are therefore warranted. Drawing on a survey of international tourists (N=5249) in south-western Norway, this article discusses whether ‘activities’, i.e. the development of local, small-scale and ideally more sustainable experiences, can contribute to economic growth without necessarily increasing numbers of arrivals. Results confirm that destinations should seek to better understand their markets, including length of stay, spending, and/or activity intention, to identify profitable markets. Ultimately, such knowledge may help addressing overtourism conflicts while building tourism systems that are more economically, socially, and environmentally resilient

A cross-country comparison of accommodation manager perspectives on online review manipulation

Accommodation businesses are increasingly dependent on a limited number of reservation platforms. A significant feature of these platforms is guest evaluations, which are transformed into ratings and rankings. As the positioning of the business in comparison to competitors determines customer demand, accommodation managers have considerable interest in maintaining or improving their online reputation. One response may be to engage in manipulation strategies. This paper presents the results of a survey including 270 hotel managers in five countries, Germany, Israel, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. Managers confirm growing competition as a result of ratings and rankings, and they report that guests are increasingly aware of the importance of reviews. To avert negative online feedback impacts, managers intervene strategically. The paper discusses new market pressures, emergent consumer judgement culture and consumer citizenship, opportunities for legal redress and the emerging importance of reputation management strategies