The meet.barcelona website is used by people visiting the city for tourism, to study or to do business. It is available in four languages and offers service information to facilitate visitors’ stays in the city, along with other information such as reasons for working here or coming here for a city break.
The site now includes a substantial improvement: an annual agenda with the unmissable events for 2024, along with recently held activities to strengthen the international side of the page.
Besides the classic annual occasions, such as the festivities for La Mercè, the Open House Barcelona and Sant Jordi, users can also find music recommendations (Jonas Brothers, Andrea Bocelli, Primavera Sound) and information on some of the main fairs (Saló Nàutic, Còmic Barcelona, Smart City).
And sports events! The America’s Cup, the Nose Race and the Comte de Godó trophy, a whole calendar with activities not to be missed by people arriving in the city.
As the digital world evolves, the landscape of website design also changes to adapt to users’ needs and the latest technology. Here are some of the most notable trends in website design in 2024.
1. Dark mode
Dark mode continues to gain in popularity as it offers benefits such as reduced visualstress and battery power saving for mobile devices. Many websites offer clear and dark mode options so users can choose the one they prefer and improve the browsing experience.
2. Bento grid
The Bento grid aims to simplify and order website pages more efficiently. Inspired by the principle of the Japanese Bento Box, this trend organises content into clearly defined sections using a combination of generous white spaces and graphic or visual elements to separate the different parts of the website. The structure facilitates browsing and comprehension of information for users, creating a more intuitive and pleasing experience.
3. Innovative typographic design
Typography has always been a crucial part of website design, but now more than ever there is a greater use of personalised and bold typographies to capture people’s attention. Frome the use of variable fonts to typological experimentation, designers play with possibilities to create more interesting and attractive reading experiences.
4. Priority for accessibility
With a growing focus on digital inclusion and accessibility, websites prioritise accessibledesign to guarantee that all users, including those with some sort of disability, can access and engage with online content easily. This includes optimising screens for reading, contrasting colours better and improving simplified browsing.
5. Micro-interactions and subtle animations
Micro-interactions and subtle animations play an important role in user experience (UX) on websites. From buttons with transition effects to animation responses when moving the cursor, these details play a key part in improving user engagement with online content.
We hope these tips prove useful if you’re thinking of updating your website and adapting it to current trends to improve user experience and browsing.
Puerto Rico was the scene for the 79thICANN Community Forum, held from 2 to 7 March. The annual event is crucial for the evolution and governance of the global internet as it brings together professionals, experts and other interested parties from around the world to address the most pressing and important matters relating to internet infrastructure and policy.
One of the main questions addressed in the meeting was the new ICANN Subsidy Programme, as well as the development of the next ICANN Strategic Plan and preparations for Universal Acceptance Day on 28 March. The latter is an initiative to promote standards and practices that guarantee compatibility with all domain names and email addresses, and to foster the implementation of these practices on a global scale to enhance the internet experience for all users.
Other key themes discussed include the management of domain names and IP addresses, the promotion of diversity and inclusion within the internet community, and the future of internet governance in a changing geopolitical context. The ICANN has been under constant scrutiny to ensure that its policies and decisions reflect the interests of all network participants, regardless of geographical location or institutional affiliation.
Besides the formal ICANN sessions, the event offered a platform for informal meetings, talks and networking between members of the internet community. These informal exchanges are essential for building ties and collaboration that can influence the future of the network.
As the network continues to evolve and grow, it is essential for the global internet community to continue collaborating and working together to guarantee a sustainable, safe and inclusive future for all internet users.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has announced a programme of preparations ahead of ICANN79, with a series of sessions designed to get the ICANN community ready for the upcoming ICANN79 forum, to be held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from 2 to 7 March 2024.
The preparatory programme for ICANN79 is being held from 20 to 22 February and includes a dozen sessions looking at various topics of interest to the ICANN community. These include updates on Universal Acceptance (UA), International Domain Names (IDN), the relationship between the ICANN board and the community and the implementation of new gTLD programmes etc.
The ICANN79 community forum is an ideal opportunity to address important topics for internet governance and the management of domain names, such as:
Domain name policies: to discuss changes and proposals for policies relating to the assignment and management of global domain names.
Network security and stability: to address cybersecurity matters and measures to ensure the stability and reliability of the internet infrastructure.
Privacy and data protection: to discuss matters relating to the privacy of internet users and the measures to protect their personal data in the context of domain names.
New domain extensions: to review requests for new domain extensions and discuss the criteria for approving and managing these.
The ICANN operates through a multilateral governance model that includes the participation of different interested parties, such as governments, companies, civil society organisations, technical and academic communities and the internet industry. The community forums organised by the ICANN are fundamental for ensuring that the decisions made benefit all internet users.
A Coruña recently hosted a meeting of representatives for the cultural and geographical domains of .barcelona, .cat, .eus and .gal. Held on 1 February, the meeting enabled the participants to share their plans for the future, commercial actions planned for this year and forecasts about the evolution of the market and the network.
The four domains are part of the GeoTLD group, which brings together domains with geographical, linguistic and cultural identities such as .scot (Scotland), .london and .bzh (Brittany). The group coordinates shared communication actions with the public and governing bodies for the network, such as the ICANN. Some of the most important domain registration companies also took part in the meeting, which offered the chance to work together for the future of cultural and geographical domains.
The session began with a presentation by the director of Cidade das TIC, Alfonso Martínez, on the importance of new infrastructures and decentralisation for the value of ICT industries. The decentralisation of regulating agencies was also addressed, taking the imminent opening of the AESIA in A Coruña as an example.
In the second part of the meeting, each domain set out their current situation and their plans for 2024. Topics addressed here included artificial intelligence, changes in European legislation, protecting user data, cybersecurity and cooperation amid geopolitical changes.
The meeting also served to discuss the possibility of implementing joint action, commercial action or brand measures in 2024. The session concluded with a working supper, the aim being to strengthen ties between registers and registration companies.
A new edition of Barcelona Districte Cultural is here! The programme runs until 27 April and offers a chance to enjoy over 230 free shows, concerts, performing arts activities and film sessions around local community centres.
You’ll find productions from theatre companies which talk about migration, family relationships, war, love and memory. The elasticity of dance and the magic of circus also form part of the programme, courtesy of local and international companies with shows for all ages.
As for music, there are nine concerts planned in a wide variety of styles, including electronic music, pop, rap, soul and punk. For its part, the Petit Cineclub section will be screening a diverse selection of animated films which have won international awards.
Some of these options come accompanied by discussions, talks, presentations and complementary activities, and there are also special sessions for primary and secondary schools.
It’s one the symbols of our city, and one of the images most frequently sought by those who visit us. Park Güell has over a century of history and receives well over 4.5 million visitors a year.
Even so, this is space for city people. Barcelona de Serveis Municipals (BSM) has been regulating access to Park Güell since 2013, the goal being to preserve this iconic city site and to maintain it properly, in harmony with the use that local people and schools make of it.
Half a million Barcelona people used the local residents card to access the park in 2023 and nearly 160,000 people visited it as part of the Gaudir més programme. School visits practically doubled compared to the previous year.
At parkguell.barcelona you’ll find everything you need to plan your visit, as well as a detailed chronology of its construction, historical context and an extensive multimedia gallery. Come along and enjoy Park Güell, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.
Meta tags, also known as meta elements or metadata, are fragments of HTML code that provide information about the content of a website for search engines and other online services. Using them effectively is crucial in SEO for a website and improving its position in search engine results.
There are different types of meta tags to bear in mind:
1. Title tag: This is one of the most essential meta tags. It specifies the title of the page and is the text that appears in the title bar of the browser. It needs to be appealing, contain relevant keywords and not exceed the limits recommended for the search engine.
2. Description tag: This provides a brief description of the page content. It is the fragment of text that appears beneath the title in search results. A well-drafted and informative description can drive up click rates.
3. Canonical ERL tag: This is used to indicate the main page when there are a number of similar ones. It helps with page hierarchy and prioritises the indicated page as canonical. We should bear in mind that in this case, the meta tag is placed on the secondary page to indicate which page is the main one.
4. Robot tag: This indicates if a search engine can index a page or not. Sometimes it can be used to prevent certain pages from being displayed in search results.
5. Alt image tag: This describes what an image shows. Besides being one of the elements that helps with positioning, it is important in terms of site usability for people with visual impairment who use screen readers that include these texts.
To use meta tags effectively to improve your search engine positioning, you should make sure that they are in keeping with the page content and that they include relevant keywords. It is important to maintain a coherent structure and avoid the excessive use of keywords, as search engines can penalise this. Finally, it is a good idea to review and update meta
tags regularly to adapt to changes in search trends and the algorithms of search engines.
Last year was a crucial period for the .barcelona domain, with a large number of key events for the city. Active participation in the most important digital congresses, such as the E-Show, BizBarcelona and WordCamp, have further strengthened the commitment to the local digital sphere.
One of the most significant projects promoted by .barcelona was to help the city’s sports clubs and organisations go digital through the initiative elmeuclubesportiu.barcelona. The project has helped reduce the digital divide in this sector, at the same time introducing people to the domain and the values and benefits associated with it.
Collaboration with other domains such as .cat, .gal and .eus took centre stage in a working meeting on 8 June. The session was used to share plans and perspectives, establish ties and explore future internet trends.
On an international level, .barcelona shared its local digitalisation projects with the GeoTLD Group at the annual meeting in Cologne, contributing to common strategies on the NIS2 directive and co-marketing.
At the ICANN 78 Congress in Hamburg, the .barcelona domain strengthened its role in internet governance, demonstrating the city’s commitment to the decisions that make up global digital architecture.
At the end of the year, the launch of the new image for the .barcelona domain signalled a strategic move to consolidate the domain as an essential point of reference for projects linked to the city.
This year gets under way with a strong determination to keep building a reputation, through collaboration with registration companies, co-marketing initiatives and an
important presence at major events. The .barcelona domain is becoming a fundamental tool for driving the city towards the digital future.
At the .barcelona domain we’ve developed a project to help sports clubs and organisations in Barcelona to go digital. Entitled elmeuclubesportiu.barcelona, the initiative has enabled them to launch a website (or update an obsolete site) and to link their digital identity with the city’s values.
“For many this was an unresolved project they couldn’t take on for financial reasons, and this opportunity has come as a gift to them as they’ve managed to cover their needs”. Toni Burrueco is a sports promotion specialist with the Barcelona Institute for Sport and has been one of the main facilitators for this project.
The digital revolution we are immersed in forces us to adapt to new ways of consuming information. This also applies when it comes to engaging with members of organisations.
“Sports organisations and their communication have a mainly dynamic reality that transforms social media into the website for many of them. Yet a website with its own domain enables them to post content that goes well beyond the day to day, explaining who they are, what they do, their history, the connection with their surroundings… A website for a sports organisation is a diamond that needs polishing”, insists Burrueco, “it’s the gateway for discovering their work for anybody interested in taking part or joining the organisation, and even for sports rivals”.
