The notion of digital and in particular Information and Communication Technology (ICT) convergence has, over the past 40 years, been in the centre of many technological discourses in different functional systems of society: from the economic and mass media to the legal and political systems. Recently, a new convergence discourse has emerged around next-generation wireless infrastructures and services. One manifestation can be seen in discussion of the mobile Internet, and in particular of new converging services connecting mobile telephony networks to the Internet. Contrary to the prominence of the topic in other domains, the Information Systems community has relegated the notion of ICT convergence to the sidelines. Only recently have there been calls to include convergence as one of the drivers for the design of new mobile infrastructures and services. However, a systematic analysis of the idea of ICT convergence is still missing. Thus, based on an extensive literature review, this dissertation aims firstly to understand if there is space for a more theoretical development of this concept in the information infrastructure literature. Secondly, it provides an initial conceptual clarification of the ICT convergence discourse. Thirdly, it suggests a systems-theoretical unfolding of the identified core distinction between convergence and divergence, namely the convergence paradox. Finally, the role of technology in these discourses is examined. This dissertation analyses the notion of convergence and provides a systems-theoretical understanding of its dynamics from a second-order cybernetics perspective. The theoretical framework of this study is based on Niklas Luhmann's Theory of Social Systems. More specifically, it uses analytical strategies based on the work by Nils A. Andersen to understand the characteristics of convergence, eventually to unfold the convergence paradox. The empirical study investigates the convergence discourses around mobile Voice-over-IP in the UK from 2000-2009. The corpus of data encompasses 39 semi-structured interviews with telecommunications experts in the field of mobile VoIP, a wide range of documents, and direct observations from practitioners' conferences. The empirical study has been part of the EPSRC / Mobile VCE Core-5 Flexible Networks Project. This dissertation contributes to the broad multi-disciplinary literature of studies dealing with the phenomenon of ICT convergence, more specifically to that on information infrastructures. It develops a conceptual clarification of the notion of convergence. The findings of this dissertation suggest seeing convergence as a difference-reduction programme. This conceptualisation has the following consequences. Firstly, it suggests that convergence is observer-dependent. Secondly, it suggests that its counter-concept is not divergence or fragmentation but rather the maintenance of difference, i.e. control. Thirdly, it suggests that convergence has to deal with the typical unintended consequences inherent in difference-reduction programmes. Furthermore, while ICT convergence treated as difference-reduction programme challenges the existing identity of the infrastructure, the primary role of control is to maintain this difference. The dynamics between these two operations seem to lead to the emergence of further fragmentation.

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Information communication technologies (ICTs) have reached into everyday life. This emphasises the increasing importance of understanding the relationship between ICTs and society (Giddens 1994; Castells 1996; Walsham 2001). Over the last few decades, ICTs have shaped many aspects of society, and the specific role that ICTs have played in influencing government and governance structures has received particular attention. Today, the term 'governance' is widely used and accepted amongst a variety of academics and practitioners. However, in recent years the processes by which rural areas are governed have changed remarkably. Many scholars accept the conceptual and theoretical debate concerning the actual and potential impact of ICTs as a powerful force shaping governance (Goodwin 1998; MacKinnon 2002), but few have attempted to support their argument by conducting detailed empirical analyses of the role and influence of ICTs for egovernance processes in rural communities. This thesis addresses this gap by analysing the linkages between ICT access and use in a remote rural area of the UK. The thesis presents an in-depth case study analysis of a rural market town (Hatherleigh) located in west Devon. It examines ICT access and use in Hatherleigh considering that individual levels of ICT adoption are uneven, depending on factors such as age, gender, employment and family composition (Ofcom 2006; Selg and Svensoon 2008). It follows a wider call in the area of rural and ICT studies that many remote rural areas face serious challenges in their efforts to benefit from the opportunities offered by ICTs (Woods 2005; Moseley and Owen 2008). The thesis particularly builds on Okot-Uma's (2001), Millard's (2003) and Odendaal's (2003) work on the impact of ICT on governance and potential changes in service delivery to rural areas. To understand the impact of ICTs on e-governance in rural areas more fully, specific emphasis is placed on how Hatherieigh residents use the internet for accessing on-line information and services and how they use the internet to engage with policy stakeholders within and beyond Hatherleigh. A specific focus is placed on analysing barriers affecting e-governance processes ranging from the local to the national scale. Ill The methodology used to collect empirical data is based on a multi-method approach, including questionnaires, interviews and participant observation to explore interactions between Hatherteigh residents and ICTs. The results suggest that ICT has changed the social landscape of rural communities such as Hatherleigh in terms of communication and job opportunities, and that it plays a key role in reducing feelings of distance and isolation. A key result is that the internet plays an important role for e-governance interactions at the regional/national level, but that it only plays a minor role at the local level. A key explanation for these different 'geographies of ICT use' is that remote mral locations such as Hatherleigh are (still) characterized by relatively close-knit communities where physical face-to-face interaction still plays an important role, thereby reducing the need for internet use to access local information. The study also suggests a typology of non-users in Hatherleigh, suggesting that non-users are a highly differentiated group in which some segments are relatively keen to use ICT in the future, while others continue to staunchly resist using ICTs. The latter are a particularly problematic group as they may be 'doubly' excluded by both living in a remote mral area that has lost some of its services (to some extent because of ICT availability) and by not being interested in using ICTs to overcome such disadvantages.

This thesis examines the introduction of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) into new social spaces. These new social spaces have been called the 'middle ground' (MG). They are found not in the workplace nor in the home but are located elsewhere in community centres, libraries and Internet cafes. The MG is used for education, communication and information retrieval. This thesis draws upon two case studies to explore the institutional, sociological and cultural development and use of such MG spaces. Theoretically, this thesis draws upon the Sociology of Science & Technology. specifically Actor Network Theory (ANT). According to ANT, to understand just how a technology becomes (or fails to become) a success we must follow and observe various innovators as they attempt to enrol others into their 'networks'. The utility of ANT is twofold. Firstly, it enables me to study 'innovation' and secondly to move beyond overarching general notions (such as technological determinism) to understand the complex ways new ICTs are being utilised in the 'middle ground'. The first case study examines the development of a 'virtual university' project 'Televersity'. Here I examine the relationship that develops between the key actors involved with the project, the strategic co-operation between the actors and the use of representations of the Local Learning Centres (LLCs) and identity of the users. The second case study examines the establishment and use of an Internet cafe. I explore the representational resources that the founders utilise in their attempts to stabilise the identity of the Internet cafe and its users. I then proceed to compare these with accounts of use, derived through a series of interviews with (and observations of) the users. The thesis thus aims to illuminate the heterogeneous and complex nature of the MG and the cooperation and flexibility needed at a policy level for such places to be sustained. Furthermore, by using an approach like ANT, we can begin to understand the micro-lev el shaping of the MG and the relation between these local processes and the wider dynamics within which they are embedded.

Net neutrality is a hotly debated and contested policy for broadband Internet access provision. In principle, net neutrality prescribes no discrimination by the type or size of data packet exchanged over the Internet. This principle has fostered innovation and economic growth. The non-discriminatory principle ingrained in Internet architecture has also made it the ultimate platform for convergence of technology, business and service. However, the content, businesses and services that the Internet supports, particularly rich content such as online audio-visual services, are pushing the existing Internet network infrastructure to its limits. The imbalance of growing demands for bandwidth and relatively static supply of network capacity has sparked a policy debate over network management principles for Internet access provision. The interdependent yet competing interests of network and content providers and all levels of convergence taking place on the Internet make net neutrality policymaking extremely challenging. To explain emerging net neutrality policies in the US and UK, this research examines the net neutrality policymaking process based on the understanding that the process is both structured and actor-driven. Treating policymaking as a communicative process, it identifies as the research data the formal communication and policy actors’ accounts of their informal communication during the policymaking process. An analytical framework that emphasises the interaction between structural factors and policy actors is then applied to both sets of data. This research argues in support of the position that net neutrality policies, like other polices, are communicative, structured and actor-driven. The challenges in developing net neutrality policy and policy measures result from the convergence of transmission infrastructure and content, and the interdependent yet competing values and interests underpinning the provision and consumption of these services.

E-mail is used extensively to share ideas, discuss issues and to collaborate in the management of projects. However, it is often considered to be a lean medium of communication, epistolary in style, and lacking in both the verbal and non-verbal cues found in face-to-face communication. These limitations can predispose the message to misunderstandings between interlocutors leading to tensions and the use of aggressive tactics. Ensuing conflicts, if badly managed, can be both destructive and costly. The main premise for this research is that conflict resolution strategies, similar to those found in interpersonal interactions, are used in e-mail communication. The purpose of this study is to identify in group projects the features inherent in the language of e-mail that show the interlocutors' use of these strategies within their written exchanges. The analysis of the data is derived from the e-mail text of three separate project teams working in European Universities. The problem of identifying these strategies is approached from the perspective of Pragmatics. The methodology used is Discourse Analysis. The study is divided into two analytical phases; the first, employs the use of Speech Acts to analyse the written utterances; the second, utilises Sillars' Typology of Conflict Resolution Strategies as a template for identifying the types of conflict used in e-mail communication. The results of this study confirm the use of three kinds of conflict resolution strategies in the e-mail; this allows a comparative analysis of the three groups to be undertaken. These findings are considered to have important implications within the field of Computer-Mediated Communication, particularly for the understanding of expressions of conflict within e-mail contexts as well as their consequences for sender/receiver interaction in project groups

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During the last decade, social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook have become normal tools for our daily communication. The rise and usage of these networks not only affected how we stay up to date, but their usage as tools for our daily conversations also affected the way we communicate online – including the ability to build friendly conversations and interpret each other’s messages. The media industry, on the other hand, has discovered the powerful advantages of Facebook and is using it to communicate directly with their target groups. But, this online communication is different. PR people who have grown up using traditional media often struggle with this new, digital world and its unfamiliar techniques and language (Morris & Goldsworthy, 2012). An increasing number of users, on the other hand, do not struggle and might expect a different form of communication to interpret PR messages the right way. While some research is available regarding public relations in an online world (e.g., Wright & Hinson, 2009; McCorkindale, 2010) and on computer-mediated communication (CMC) (Walther, 1992; Draft & Lengel, 1984; Rice, 1987) little empirical evidence has been offered on the impact CMC has on the usage of language and communication within the field of online PR specifically – and its interpretation by customers. As PR is concerned with communication and, according to CMC, the Internet influences the way we communicate and interpret communication, there is a clear need for research that investigates what affects clients’ interpretation of text- based public relations communication practices on Facebook. Employing a qualitative grounded theory approach and semi-structured in-depth interviews with users of Facebook, this thesis presents the development of the new theory of user-oriented appropriateness, which explains the process of what affects the users interpretation of PR driven Facebook posts and of how to communicate appropriate on the SNS.