Introduction: after mobile media

Mobile media are a crucial and pervasive part of global media, culture, communication and information––and traverse a vast and complex swathe of technology worlds, social and natural environments. Mobile media have strong links with mobile communication and information and with mobile technology generally. They are also deeply embedded in how we understand and practice mobilities. However, mobile media are distinct––they are forms of media that have made major changes to how we use, live with and in media and how we understand the nature, functions and implications of media. They are dynamic and rapidly evolving, while also having specific place-based histories.
Challenges for researchers and students are considerable, as they seek to find authoritative accounts of the field, keep pace with the emerging forms of mobile media and their social and cultural coordinates, and place mobile media in the broader transformations of media and their industries, cultures and economies. In this introductory chapter, we briefly characterize the field of mobile media, noting key works and resources and providing an overview and user’s guide to this second edition of the Mobile Media Companion––with its aim to understand the state-of-the-art of mobile media and the theories, concepts, methods and research that helps us understand them.