Information and Communication Technologies: Visions and Realities illuminates the social and economic implications of advances in information and communication technologies. It has been written and edited to reach a broad audience across the social sciences interested in constructive ways of thinking about the social dynamics of the revolution in digital media. Based on a decade of research undertaken by the UK's Programme on Information and Communication Technologies (PICT), this book explains* how social factors influence technological innovation and convergence;* why organizations seek to transform work, services, and management;* ways in which households domesticate new media;* how public policy andregulation shape the impact of technology on employment, media concentration, privacy, and access in an information society.The thirty contributors include leading figures in the field.