News 31.12.2020

Looking Back in 2020: Media & Technology

In 2020, tech firms and developers made their products more eco-friendly, inclusive and human-centric, writes Foresight editor Kathryn Bishop.

The Trend: Low-impact Interfaces

The WiLD Network by Guy Mills, London, designed to mitigate the negative ecological impact of data storage and transmission
The WiLD Network by Guy Mills, London, designed to mitigate the negative ecological impact of data storage and transmission
The WiLD Network by Guy Mills, London, designed to mitigate the negative ecological impact of data storage and transmission

While technology innovations abound, a growing awareness of the carbon emissions associated with our online browsing habits began to gain traction in 2020. In Low-impact Interfaces, published in August, we examined how designers are working to simplify UX and UI design to be greener and more energy-efficient.

At a time when the average single webpage size is 3.48Mb – more than 24 times the size it was in 2003 (source: Serving Green) – brands are recoding their e-commerce platforms to use less energy. Leading the way, Danish brand Organic Basics’ low-energy version of its online store reduced the amount of data transfer by up to 70% by having a limited number of images and no videos.

Elsewhere, UK design studio Normally has redesign Instagram to be more energy-efficient. The project, Post Abundance, presents a version of Instagram that uses significantly less energy by replacing the platform’s automatic image- and video-loading with text, giving users the option to load only the images they’re genuinely interested in seeing.

The Big Idea: Africa’s mobile technology advancements

Twiga Foods, Kenya Twiga Foods, Kenya

In November, we took a closer look at the evolving African Mobile Technology Market, where phones are empowering people across the continent to forge a new future for healthcare, commerce and rural connectivity.

After only four months of development, Engo Holdings, a Chinese mobile phone company that assembles devices in Uganda, this year integrated a temperature reader into smartphones to assist with local Covid-19 diagnosis and management. Elsewhere, mobile technology is becoming more inclusive. Mobile hardware company Transsion is creating phone cameras better calibrated to black and brown skin tones. It was also the first major phone brand to add an Amharic keyboard for users in Ethiopia, alongside Hausa and Swahili keyboards.

Focusing on remote regions, Loon, a sister company of Google, is using balloons suspended in the stratosphere to provide communities with internet connectivity. After a trial to expand existing 4G networks in Kenya to 35,000 rural citizens, it will now extend South Africa’s Vodacom network to Cabo Delgado and Niassa in Mozambique – two provinces that have proved hard to cover previously due to their size, topography and low population density, bringing many more Africans online.

The Campaign: Three imagines a vibrant future powered by 5G

Three, Hey UK, The Real 5G Future is Here

Foretelling some of the near-future advancements seen this last year, in March 2020 mobile network Three unveiled a vibrant, multi-layered vision of future living in the UK – powered by 5G connectivity.

Created by Wieden + Kennedy London, the fast-paced, three-minute campaign posits a bright, post-Brexit future for the UK, and the ways in which 5G could transform everything from corner shop interactions to air travel and immersive music experiences.

The sci-fi style ad features many familiar British references, including the red buses, Greggs’ vegan sausage rolls and a London skyline brimming with digital advertising. In one scene, a boy orders an 'emoji water’ from behind the counter of a shop, using an AR face filter to make him look older.

In this way, the campaign echoes the themes of our 2019 macrotrend Programmable Realities, with new technologies and connectivity allowing brands to become increasingly integrated into every element of consumer life.

The Interview: Tackling racism in brands’ audio content

The Six Dimensions of Sound by Studio Resonate The Six Dimensions of Sound by Studio Resonate

After a year in which the Black Lives Matter movement stimulated brands to take action on systemic racism, we spoke to Steve Keller, sonic strategy director at Studio Resonate, about addressing racism and stereotyping in brands’ audio marketing and content.

Keller describes how audio content is all about creating emotional engagement with listeners, but history has racialised our ears to often create whitewashed radio and advertising where voiceovers are concerned. ‘There remains an issue when we think about the sound of the American voice. For example, I looked at health-focused commercials during the pandemic and found that over 90% of the voices featured were white, even though a larger percentage of the black population were being affected by the virus,’ he says. ‘I don't expect voice diversity was something [these] advertisers were even thinking about, but why are we choosing the voices that we choose?

As we move into 2021, Keller says brands should listen again to their content, evaluate their output and address arising problems. ‘Listen, bring in diversity where you can, and have clear goals so you can check the outcomes and see how you're doing.’

The Space: The rise of multifaceted virtual realms

Reporters Without Boarders, France
Reporters Without Boarders, France

Without a doubt, 2020 was the year of the virtual realm, as people in lockdown shifted their socialising, activism, gameplay and entertainment into digital spaces.

Though many virtual and gaming platforms innovated this year, leading the charge were Minecraft, Fortnight and Animal Crossing. The latter became a hotbed of activity for everything from luxury brands to political campaigns. In September, the Animal Crossing community was able to support the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris political campaign with a series of virtual flags that could be placed in their avatars yards.

Politics and activism also filtered into Minecraft. The platform became a safe space for censored journalists in March 2020, with design studio BlockWorks and Reporters without Borders building a virtual library filled with books containing articles censored in their country of origin but available for anyone to read inside Minecraft.

Musicians also made their mark within these virtual realms. In April, rapper Travis Scott opened the floodgates to virtual concerts with a two-day Fortnite ‘world tour,’ which achieved a then record-breaking 12.3m participants.

Download the Future Forecast 2021 report

Now that you know what shaped 2020, discover what’s on the horizon. Download our Future Forecast 2021 report comprising 50 new behavioural patterns across 10 key consumer sectors, expert opinion pieces and interviews with global innovators.

Previous News Articles
Ocado’s Shopping List Stories campaign finds emotional value in the weekly shop

News

Ocado’s Shopping List Stories campaign finds emotional value in the weekly shop

Ocado is reframing grocery shopping as an emotional experience with Shopping List Stories, a new campaign by Uncommon Creative Studio.
Food And Drink : Supermarket : Branding And Advertising
Foresight Friday: Alice Crossley, senior foresight analyst

News

Foresight Friday: Alice Crossley, senior foresight analyst

Every Friday, The Future Laboratory team offers an end-of-week wrap-up of the topics, issues, ideas and virals we’re all talking about. This week, ...
Foresight Friday : Ff : Lionesses
Stat: Netflix confirms anime watching is no longer niche

News

Stat: Netflix confirms anime watching is no longer niche

More than half of Netflix’s 300m global subscribers now watch anime, according to proprietary figures shared by the streamer.
Pop Culture & Media : Youth : Technology
The Faroe Islands bring back the joy of getting lost

News

The Faroe Islands bring back the joy of getting lost

As algorithm-driven travel fuels overtourism, a new initiative is challenging travellers to let go of planning and control.
Travel : Tourism : The Faroe Islands
Thai perfume brand Journal turns fragrance samples into NFC collectables

News

Thai perfume brand Journal turns fragrance samples into NFC collectables

Fragrance brand Journal is rewriting the rules of scent sampling with a wearable fragrance tester that doubles as a social connector.
Beauty : Fragrance : Technology
Stat: Survey finds hardening stances on office attendance are impacting UK staff wellbeing

News

Stat: Survey finds hardening stances on office attendance are impacting UK staff wellbeing

Hardening return-to-office mandates are fuelling anxiety among UK workers, with 38% reporting that media coverage of stricter attendance policies i...
Office : Workplace : Stat
Innovation Debrief 2025–2026 report goes live

News

Innovation Debrief 2025–2026 report goes live

Discover the top 50 innovations acknowledging, driving and anticipating change in our new Innovation Debrief 2025–2026 report. 
Innovation Debrief 2024-2025 : Future Trends 2026 : Cultural Foresight
Joe Wicks’ Activate turns movement into play for kids

News

Joe Wicks’ Activate turns movement into play for kids

Fitness trainer Joe Wicks is swapping live-action workouts for animation with Activate – a lively new series of five-minute fitness bursts designed...
Fitness : Health And Wellbeing : Gen Alpha
IKEA creates open-air library along the Seine in Paris

News

IKEA creates open-air library along the Seine in Paris

IKEA has unveiled the Billyothèque, a pop-up outdoor library transforming a stretch of Paris’s Seine riverbank into a space for slow, serendipitous...
Ikea : Reading Room : Reading Experience
Stat: US teens turn to AI companions for life advice

News

Stat: US teens turn to AI companions for life advice

A new study by Common Sense Media reveals that 72% of US teens aged 13–17 have tried AI companions, with over half now using them regularly.
Technology : AI : Stat
You have 2 free News articles remaining. Sign up to LS:N Global to get unlimited access to all articles.
BECOME A MEMBER
SIGN IN