The digital future has long been talked about but the pandemic has brought it a big step closer. For millions, technology has been a lifeline in a new, socially-distanced reality. All over the world, consumers forced to stay at home have tuned in to Netflix, ordered from Amazon and dialled in to Zoom calls. In the US, less than 5 per cent of grocery shopping took place online before the crisis but this has surged to 10-15 per cent. Zoom says peak numbers using its video conferencing app in April were 30 times the level in December.
長期以來，人們一直在談論數字未來，但新型冠狀病毒肺炎（COVID-19，即2019冠狀病毒病）疫情讓我們離它更近了一大步。對數百萬人來說，在拉開社交距離的新現實下，技術就是生命線。在世界各地，被迫呆在家里的消費者收看Netflix的節目，從亞馬遜(Amazon)下單購物，在Zoom上開視頻會議。在美國，危機前食品雜貨購買只有不到5%是在網上進行的，但如今這一比例已飆升至10%至15%。Zoom表示，今年4月份其視頻會議應用的峰值是去年12月份的30倍。