COVID advanced the world into the future

[paxmao]

I think most of us would rather not have had COVID. It has been devastating for many economies and it took a bad toll on people. However it has had some side benefits (some may argue that having Trump removed for now may be one of them, LOL).

I am talking about the digital revolution that was already taking place, yet still had some bumps along the road to occur, and has been forcefully implemented by many companies that required their people to keep on working. I am also talking about the immense number of new influencers and subscription services that had increased their adept several times-fold. All this would have taken ages otherwise.

demand for services that can be performed remotely or provide solutions to the challenges of reduced personal interactions, such as information and communications technology (ICT), and deliveries, has increased significantly. In a span of three months, the pandemic has resulted in a 63 percent reduction in demand for hotels, while increasing demand for ICT by a comparable rate

A source on the matter.

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[TopTort777]

The only benefit I see from covid is that if forced world economy to restart. Weak, useless, ineffective business and services has died, while those who wanted, evolved and survived. Those who wanted, managed to adapt their work to current realities. The bad thing about all this - humankind paid a really high price for all that.

[target]

Covid forces us to adopt working remotely,  school teachers today now has to teache infront of the laptop while the kids watches the teacher speak. Old folks has to learn facebook messenger now to they could talk and see relatives at the same time. Its neccessary to learn how to use gadgets or they are going to die of loneliness.

Easy for them to use the internet now and do onoine transactions too. And its not going to be hard to introduce crypto wallets or CBDC.

[danherbias07]

Not just that, more people will get fat when the economy goes back to sub-normal.  Almost everything now can be bought online and processed thru delivery.
The good part, you can also pay thru digital cash applications or bank transfer. That means lesser cash which is being pushed even before the pandemic.
But I have never seen one merchant yet that sells product and accepts cryptocurrencies as payment.
I guess the volatility is still the wall that stops them from accepting it.

[Gozie51]

Every bad has a good to it. Covid-19 wasn't good because it drained many economy and put them into recession. What about the lives that were lost and still losing, it has created fear and shaped humans to a new normal, face mask and distancing that are preached every time sounds like drums into our ears.

The other side too can't be overemphasized because the online jobs and businesses have grown away from what it was. Jobs online have started creating wealth and bitcoin rise to greater popularity is also part of it.

[sapnu]

The pandemic didn't give us any side benefits at all, it forced us to change our way of living wherein it is mostly detrimental for us. Some people might consider it as a blessing in disguise but that is all because we are not on the same boat. Not everyone is privileged nor have the ability to provide daily needs due to losing their job because of COVID. The outcomes or the after effects of this pandemic after it is done will surely be devastating and it would mostly impact the economy of the third world countries. Countries like China might take advantage of the moment as they were able to neutralize the situation within their nation.

[target]

Not just that, more people will get fat when the economy goes back to sub-normal.  Almost everything now can be bought online and processed thru delivery.
The good part, you can also pay thru digital cash applications or bank transfer. That means lesser cash which is being pushed even before the pandemic.
But I have never seen one merchant yet that sells product and accepts cryptocurrencies as payment.
I guess the volatility is still the wall that stops them from accepting it.

Digital cash is very common now. Many of them are competing which is convenient.  Its easy to use since there is no ID verification to it too and with just a phone you don't have to travel to visit a remittance center.

Was also waiting for  a store nearby that will accept BTC or whichever cryptocurrency just to see that at least in my lifetime I could experience paying BTC to a store or maybe a fastfood using my android wallet. And yhen I could say finally its adopted I've waited for years tbat I dont have to fly to Tokyo.

[sheenshane]

IMO, regardless of the pandemic, the shift will always happen and the paper business is actually the one on which it is losing its industry very much now.

Imagine, schools being done over the internet?
Notes being written with digital notepads and sticky notes?  Even people didn't even notice that they aren’t using papers that often anymore compared to when the internet wasn’t there and not yet developed.

There will always be shiftings that would happen and that is the reason why we’re here.  Financial services are becoming different now and it’s becoming much free, services being offered have become more convenient and the freedom is there, IMO.

[Silberman]

The only benefit I see from covid is that if forced world economy to restart. Weak, useless, ineffective business and services has died, while those who wanted, evolved and survived. Those who wanted, managed to adapt their work to current realities. The bad thing about all this - humankind paid a really high price for all that.

There was without a doubt many industries that were in place just because of inertia and because the government decided that this was the best outcome as too many jobs will be lost, but when the pandemic came they could not offer protection to those industries and the jobs were lost anyway, this should show us that progress should not be stopped for political concerns as sooner or later it will impose itself whether people like this or not.

[Poker Player]

I agree, it does seem to have accelerated something that was inevitably happening anyway: the transition to the digital world.

Another thing I see that has changed is the meetings: the long trips that used to be made to meet in person, with all the economic expense that implies. I think COVID has definitely changed that. There will still be trips to meet in person, but far fewer.

[bosede1]

From the chart, I was wondering how financial services, education, and oil and gas are potential losers during the pandemic. I don't really see the point because it is only when the services are rendered that there will be a gain or loss to both parties but during the pandemic financial services are still rendered it was even the people who save with this service providers that are at the losing end.

[grabpopcorn536]

Pandemic changes people's lifestyles and it benefits the economic sectors you have listed above. In general, a pandemic brings enormous losses compared to the small benefits mentioned above.
The world is not changing, it is adapting to current conditions. I believe the world's economic industries will return to their true value and trajectory once the pandemic ends.

[ashmodeus]

well , that how the new world works, when something direct is no longer possible, humans are required to find other options , eventhough its a bit creepy , i mean for example , I don't have the enthusiasm to watch football anymore, since the euphoria of a match no longer exists, because the fanatical supporters were no longer there ,but what can we say? , we have to adapt, and consequently bring more opportunities for any company that is a virtual technology type.

[TastyChillySauce00]

It certainly is, though it also takes many people's lives. Now many company also trying to approach a more efficient way to deal with the pandemic and while at the same time improving the workflow. I personally do like the nature of working remotely though it's just feel a lot more relaxing and all. Not to mention that the pandemic also forces us to use any digital means of paying things whether it's offline and online, at first it was through centralized digital payment services now it seems among the millenials we've been moving to cryptocurrency.
I wonder how much slower cryptocurrency gonna got its fame if not for the pandemic.

[Kamarah]

Covid19 translation has resumed. Everyone is very confused and worried. The speed of spread is too fast for everyone to turn their hands on. In India, the number of people dying is too much, they have to cremate their bodies. In Vietnam, the number of people infected is 500. Let's strictly follow the government's direction in epidemic prevention. Keep a safe distance, disinfect and wear a medical mask.

[slapper]

Covid-19 is the worst catastrophe because it does not only affect the economy but also kills millions of innocents. It can either be a cleanse or a purge but further discussion may touch the moral issues.

As you can see, on the biggest scales, the government is the one in charge of how the covid-19 spread and how to seal it within a country. The western has a different approach with arrogance and selfishness causing millions of death and the deadliest zone in the US. Asia countries, on the other hand, take more responsibilities and solutions (some of them are tough and strict) to force people to stay at home as well as wear masks. The culture here (I do not know why) creates the belief that by following the government orders, they will be able to defeat the virus. Magically, it works

On the smaller scales, companies that refuse to change their ecosystem and stay in traditional and physical resources are swiped out from the games. There are likely hundreds of thousands of firms and companies that are shut down forever, some of them even have long years of operating. In contrast, there are also new companies, creating new environments for businesses to work from the Internet and they are very successful. Furthermore, people also look at bitcoin as a safe haven, which is stronger than gold, obviously. It is not affected by the current world condition because it is digital. People realize that fact and start to put their money in bitcoin. Consequently, the cryptocurrency world is also beneficial from the new perceptions. New projects are being researched and studied while developers, founders, and investors do their best to advance new implementation, gadgets, and add-ons. This activity does reform the whole crypto aspects which were stagnant for the last 2 years.

Honestly, no one needs the existence of this virus. It only makes everything worse. But when we look at the positive signs, there are also achievements and developments being boosted with an outstanding speed.

However, I do not want to say thanks to the Virus. I guess, everything happens for a reason, and it also has a price

[satsmainman]

I don't know what part of the world OP could be from but i can categorically tell him/her that the downsides of this pandemic on the global economies is by far more than the upsides. Yes there's a huge surge in the acceptance of digital revolution but a lot of people and economies are suffering greatly right now as a result of that pandemic.

[Ausgewielt]

It seems that this COVID not only give negative impact but also give positive impact in other side. Many people have been suffering because of loss job or decreasing profit during this pandemic, but I think this pandemic also give opportunity for those who don't give up. This pandemic is creating demand for delivery service, mask, and healthy food that combined with technology and internet. I hope we keep healthy during this pandemic.

[Lorence.xD]

It didn't advance because this virus was already talked around years ago in a medical science journal but they got ignored. I would say that the world already has the tools they just don't want to use it because there was no pandemic and now here we are and everyone is cramming because they don't know what to do, the innovations during this pandemic are almost temporary I guarantee that.

[Lucius]

The digital revolution is inevitable, the pandemic has only accelerated it and opened up some new business visions for some parts of entrepreneurship and the economy. So I recently read an article describing how some companies have realized that some jobs can be done much faster and cheaper via Skype or Zoom apps, which will greatly affect the transportation industry (especially airlines) which should lose a significant share of earnings from business trips.

On the other hand, no digital achievements or virtual reality can replace real tourist travel, and if things do not return to normal very soon - many countries that mostly rely on tourism revenues will seriously have to look for some alternatives. I may be old-fashioned, but even before the pandemic, people became more and more socially distant - now it's even more pronounced and going in the direction that our best friends will become smartphones and computers.

What is certain is that nothing will be the same again, even if we manage to suppress the pandemic - people will always ask if something similar can happen again, and of course it can, it's only a matter of time. Cryptocurrencies have, of course, positioned themselves well in all of this, and many argue that it is precisely the pandemic that is largely responsible for their success - although we know there is much more to it than that.