In this discussion we examine the notion of the datafied web by situating it historically and methodologically. By mobilizing insights from a range of fields, the discussion broadens the conceptual and methodological approaches and tools available for studying the datafied web.
A dialogue between Migle Bareikyte, Carolin Gerlitz, Sebastian Giessmann, Jonathan W. Y. Gray, Anne Helmond, Ian Milligan, Nanna Bonde Thylstrup, and Valérie Schafer.
Anne Helmond: For me, the datafied web refers to an evolving ecosystem in which the collection, analysis, and monetisation of data have become central operational logics of the web, app, and now AI-based environment. It is not limited to visible metrics such as likes or shares in the user interface but extends to largely invisible back-end infrastructures that enable audience construction, tracking, and targeting. The datafied web is composed of interconnected platforms, data intermediaries, and advertising technologies that exchange data through APIs (Application ProgrammingInterfaces), SDKs (Software Development Kits) and other technical means as well as through strategic organisational partnerships (van der Vlist & Helmond, 2021). Digital advertising has played a key role in creating and sustaining this ecosystem, and continues to shape how data is produced, collected, circulated, and made economically valuable. In this sense, the datafied web is both infrastructural, organisational, and political-economic in nature.
Bareikyte, M., Gerlitz, C., Giessmann, S., Gray, J. W. Y., Helmond, A., Milligan, I., Thylstrup, N. B., & Schafer, V. (2026). The datafied web: A round-doc discussion. Internet Histories, 0(0), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/24701475.2026.2671555