Special Interest Group

Information & Communication Technologies

Exploring how digital technologies are transforming tourism, hospitality education, research and industry practice.

Focus & Themes

The SIG aims to provide a networking hub for CAUTHE members to co-create and participate in professional development projects related to the use and impact of Information & Communication Technologies (ICT) in the wide tourism industry and education. Given the diversified transformational impact of ICT, the SIG’s activities will focus on investigating the impact of technologies on four key areas: tourism demand, tourism supply, tourism industry, tourism education and tourism research. Major topics will include:

  • ICT and tourism demand: co-creation, consumer behaviour, customer empowerment and engagement
  • ICT applications and challenges for tourism firms and organisations: integrating ICT into business operations and value chains, big data, crowdsourcing / crowdfunding, destination management systems, data analytics
  • The structural changes of ICT in tourism industry: networking, collaboration, business models, coopetition
  • ICT and tourism education: pedagogical e-learning models, e-assessment, MOOCS, ICT skills and competencies in tourism, teaching ICT and ICT curriculum development in tourism
  • ICT and research in tourism / hospitality: online research, open source data and research, online research ethics, online research tools, e-research methodologies (e.g. netnography)
  • ICT and the future: understanding how changes in ICT is occurring, what is next, forecasts and scenarios about the future

NEW!! SIG Snapshot video (3 mins) Professor Marianna Sigala & Associate Professor Ian Yeoman 

Key Outcomes for Members

The SIG aims to benefit members by:

  • creating a forum for exchanging and discussing knowledge and best practices as well as staying alerted about ICT applications, impacts and challenges in the tourism industry and education need to be alerted and informed about current developments and
  • enabling tourism educators and industry partners to liaise and develop networks through which they can collaboratively pursue research in the area of ICT and tourism
  • developing and implementing workshops, seminars, research and publication opportunities whereby tourism academics and professionals can use for developing their ICT knowledge and skills, advancing their careers and outputs
  • evaluating and demonstrating the role and future potential of ICT in order to boost the current use of ICT as well as guide and drive technology tourism research and innovative industry practices.

Past Activities & Events

2026

Meeting at the CAUTHE 2026 Conference at 1700-1800 on Wednesday 11 February, The Vines, National Wine Centre Adelaide.

2025

Meeting at the CAUTHE 2025 Conference at 16:00- 17:30 on Wednesday 12 February. Discussion lead by SIG Chair Prof Marianna Sigala about the scope and focus of the SIG, discuss the call for a SIG Co-chair and develop a list of potential activities for 2025. Download flyer.

2024

Meeting at the CAUTHE 2024 Conference on Thursday 8 February at 4pm – 5:30pm (AEDT) . The agenda included a welcome to old and new members, review of past year, discussion and action plan for 2024, investigation of co-chair and any other business.

2022

The 2022 Information & Communications and Technology SIG meeting was held online on Friday 11 February at 17:00-18:00 (AEDT). Discussions focussed on emerging technologies in our sectors and the ways they impact our industry to inspire us to draft and lead a future research agenda in the field. Ideas for research collaborations and other scholarly activities were brainstormed and elaborated by the participant

2016

Date Founded: March 2016

Founding Coordinators
Prof Marianna Sigala (University of South Australia) and Prof Ian Yeoman (Victoria University of Wellington)

MEET THE COORDINATORS

SIG Coordinators

  • Professor Marianna Sigala
    Professor
    Marianna
    Sigala

    University of Newcastle

    Professor Marianna Sigala
    Professor
    Marianna
    Sigala
    Other Roles Contact Form
GET INVOLVED

Interested in Information & Communication Technologies?

Connect with the coordinators, participate in upcoming events and become part of the ICT research community.