With many screen-time rules in abeyance and distance learning replacing in-person school, teens and younger school kids are reaping the benefits but also seeing the limitations of what digital technology can do for them.

Back-to-school spending will elevate sales in the short term: After more than a year of remote learning, many students will return to school this fall—and retailers can expect a boom in volume as consumers shop for school supplies and clothing in the coming weeks and months: US retail back-to-school sales are expected to reenter positive growth this year, hitting $95.83 billion, per eMarketer forecasts

In 2020, most schools transitioned to remote learning because of the pandemic, but this year, most schools are expected to open up—heralding an uptick in back-to-school sales in categories like apparel and electronics and helping elevate issuer volume. Issuers could develop rewards related to back-to-school shopping that would also help maximize revenue potential.

Alibaba’s own collaboration app, DingTalk, also saw tremendous uptake in China during the pandemic, among not just knowledge workers, but also students using it for remote learning. In March 2020, there were 61.9 million new installs of DingTalk in China, up 436% year over year, according to QuestMobile data.

Virtual fitness, business collaboration, and distance learning are just three of many examples. With more development and more demand, VR and AR are increasingly seen as viable replacements for in-person training, meetings, events, conventions, customer service, healthcare, and other activities. Big Tech sees big opportunity.

Tencent was fined $77,000 last month for its 2018 investment in online education app Yuanfudao. Baidu was also fined $77,000 around the same time for its 2014 takeover of consumer electronics maker Ainemo. Shopping giant Meituan received a $230,000 fine last month for “improper pricing behavior.”.

eMarketer vice president of business development Marissa Coslov, principal analyst Mark Dolliver and vice president of research Jennifer Pearson discuss whether distance learning works, what the knock-on consequences are and how parents are using digital to cope, handle, distract and educate their kids. They then talk about the postponement of the 2020 Summer Olympics, free Amazon Prime Video kids content and the impact Americans think COVID-19 will have on their personal finances.

Distance learning can be costly for some parents

Child psych experts say the stress of remote learning amid the pandemic is exacerbating ADHD symptoms and spurring new ADHD-related evaluations. In March of last year, there was a 67% increase in ADHD diagnoses in patients aged 13 to 17 compared with 2019, according to an Athenahealth study. And requests for providers who specialize in ADHD have jumped 60% since March 2020.

Social commerce race aside, engaging content and a strong community of KOLs and ordinary users alike are still the core of these platforms, which are competing for eyeballs in new verticals such as esports, online learning, and finance, as well as original content and longer video formats.

State of the category: The computer/consumer electronics category spiked in sales growth last year as consumers shifted to remote learning and working and relied more on home entertainment. In 2020, US ecommerce sales for computer/consumer electronics grew 35.2%, reaching $178.69 billion—significant growth for a category that’s already established in ecommerce.

Virtual fitness, business collaboration, and distance learning are just three of many examples. With more development and more demand, VR and AR are increasingly being seen as viable replacements for in-person training, meetings, events, conventions, customer service, healthcare, and other activities. Big Tech sees big opportunity.

Atop the time and energy it consumes, distance learning can also impose a financial burden. In LendingTree polling in April-May 2020, 48% of parents said they had bought an iPad, laptop or desktop monitor to enable distance learning for their kids. Some had bought headphones (25%) and software (22%). Respondents spent an average of $1,019 for such goods.

These changes were largely the result of pandemic-induced shifts to remote work and virtual learning, increasing demand for higher-quality telecom services and faster internet speeds. Mobile Advertising Formats. Data from Logan also shed light on how the pandemic affected client investments in mobile ads.

A significant portion of families in Canada opted for online learning in the fall of 2020—more than one-quarter of children learned from home in the country’s biggest school district in Toronto. Canada is among the top tier of countries when it comes to YouTube viewing.

One of the drivers of renewed growth is adoption among children, many of whom are engaged in distance learning this year as school districts across Canada provide the option for online classwork. In the Greater Toronto Area, nearly a third of elementary students’ families opted to receive their education remotely this school year.