The Seven Wonders of the (Online) World

By Isabella Lessene, Year 11, The Ridgeway Campus

It is clear that the internet has saved the year. Without it, we would have been deprived of education, socialisation, entertainment, consumption, information – pretty much everything needed for a functional modern life. But which sectors of the vast and ever-growing online domain have really come to the rescue in 2020, the year of lockdown and social isolation? 

1. Video conferencing platforms 

Arguably the applications which saw the biggest growth this year were video conferencing platforms, such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom. From December 2019 to June 2020, Zoom gained 290 million daily users and is now the chosen platform of 90,000 schools in 20 countries. Such media has allowed education to continue to a high standard, especially at a tertiary level, and will have permanently modernised the schooling system for years to come. 

2. Media providers

Streaming services (Netflix, Disney+, etc) and other video platforms like YouTubehave absolutely dominated the entertainment industry in 2020. With options such as cinemas and video rental stores completely off the table, those with devices looked instead to these streaming giants for hours of show binging, movie marathoning and free-time filling. Some TV shows like Tiger King even became household staples overnight, receiving 5.3 billion minutes of streaming between 23 March and 29 March alone.

3. Social media 

Social media has already been a major part of so many lives for years, but with worldwide lockdowns and isolation, it became our sole means of connection to others. The classics (Instagram, Facebook) remained ever strong, but the highly addictive platform Tik Tok easily takes the cake for the pandemic’s favourite social medium, accumulating 800 million active users worldwide. While apps such as Houseparty or Messenger allowed for coming as close to seeing people as possible, Tik Tok succeeded particularly in allowing for the shared experience of the ups and downs of 2020, creating memes, trends and talent galore. 

4. Online shopping 

One of the biggest impacts of the numerous and widespread lockdowns was on those businesses that would otherwise rely on customer interaction and in-store purchasing. The metamorphosis of retail into an online medium spared some of these businesses as well as their customers, who were unable to physically purchase products. A survey titled ‘COVID-19 and e-commerce’, involving 3,700 participants from 9 countries, showed that following the start of the pandemic, more than half the consumers from both emerging and developed economies relied on online shopping; verifying that the digitalisation of commerce will have a lasting effect on the world economy, especially as it attempts to recover. 

5. Food delivery services 

COVID-19 undoubtedly dealt a blow to hospitality industries, but food delivery services kept it from total collapse. The beauty of online ordering and food delivery was not lost in Melbourne, where, as confirmed by Menulog, there was a 54 percent increase in orders since March 2020. Uber Eatsfound that the city’s consistent favourite cuisine was the Halal Snack Pack, while Deliveroodiscovered that nationally, the all-time classic fish and chips was Australia’s most popular choice. These delivery services have protected many local food businesses and have, in some cases, facilitated their exceptional growth during these uncertain times.  

6. Online games 

Gaming kept the idle hands and minds of many entertained during what was a vastly socially deprived year. Therefore, it only makes sense that most significant games of 2020 were those that allowed for enthusiastic engagement with other people. Among Us, the online game originally released in June 2018, exponentially grew in popularity, thanks in part to the world’s biggest social media influencers collaborating to show their audiences the hours of fun that one such online game can provide. Gaming will only continue to be the chosen entertainment of many a pandemic goer, especially with the 2020 release of the PS5, estimated to sell 21.6 million units within its first year alone. 

7. Information and News providers 

Perhaps the most essential aspect of the online world this year will have been news and information platforms. Access to crucial information, like the symptoms of COVID-19 and the constantly revised rules regarding lockdowns or social distancing policies are just two examples of the importance of this particular domain. The need to learn of updates regarding the virus has not only augmented the readership for online local and established newspapers but has prompted Google’s creation of a ‘Search Trend’ section dedicated solely to COVID-19 related searches. Unsurprisingly, it shows that the virus has been, by far, one of the most popular search topics this year.