Some platforms in the collaborative economy offer a combination of sectoral and information society services, which characterises them as a hybrid entity. The concurrent provision of disparate types of services necessitates the determination of the predominant activity of a given platform on a case-by-case basis. This, in turn, gives rise to legal uncertainty and inconsistent case law at the national level. This paper examines the impact of the choice of institutional alternatives in the context of multilevel governance in the EU on the legal status of collaborative economy business models such as Uber and Airbnb in the EU single market. The paper employs a mixed-methods research approach to analyse pivotal jurisprudential decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and national courts. It reaches the conclusion that the Airbnb platform, in its capacity as an information society service provider, is subject to the provisions of the Electronic Commerce Directive (2000/31/EC). Conversely, Uber, by virtue of its definition as a transport undertaking, is subject to shared jurisdiction between EU institutions and Member States in the field of transport services. This paper initiates a discussion on the suitability of the extant regulatory apparatus and underscores the necessity for the establishment of an appropriate institutional framework, either centralised at the EU level or decentralised at the level of Member States, that would provide substantive rules aimed at comprehensively regulating the legal status of hybrid business models, thus allowing for more uniform conditions for their operation in the EU single market.

This paper investigates the elements affecting dividend yield in developing Southeast Asian countries—more specifically, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Examined here are the roles of financial information including debt to equity ratio, free cashflows, property, plant, and equipment (PPE) and total sales with controlling factors of size, institutional ownership, and firm age using both short-run and long-run analytical frameworks including the Error Correction Model and Engle and Granger’s approach. The results reveal different trends in the three nations. Higher debt and free cashflows lower dividend yield in Thailand; institutional shareholders benefit from maintaining greater dividend payouts. Aging companies in Malaysia are more likely to pay more dividends while rising revenues are linked to smaller short-term payouts. Leveraged and asset-heavy companies are more likely to keep paying dividends in Singapore. These discoveries have important ramifications for investors and business management trying to maximize dividend policies and improve shareholder value in developing economies.

Physical sampling of water on site is necessary for various applications like drinking water quality checking in lakes and checking for contaminants in freshwater systems. The use of water surface vehicles is a promising technology for monitoring and sampling water bodies, and they offer several advantages over traditional monitoring methods. This project involved designing and integrating a drone controller, water collection sampling contraption unit, and a surveillance camera system into a water surface vehicle (WSV). The drone controller unit is used to operate the boat from the starting location until the location of interest and then back to the starting location. The drone controller has an autopilot system where the operator can set a course and be able to travel following the path set, whereas the WSV will fight the external forces to keep itself in the right position. The water collection sampling unit is mounted onto WSV so when it travels to the location, it can start collecting and holding water samples until it returns to the start location. The field of view (FOV) surveillance camera helps the operator to observe the surrounding location during the operation. Experiments were conducted to determine the operational capabilities of the robot boat at the Ayer Keroh Lake. The water collection sampling contraption unit collected samples from 44 targeted areas of the lake. The comprehensive examination of 14 different water quality parameters were tested from the collected water samples provides insights into the factors influencing the pollution and observation of water bodies. The successful design and development of a water surface surveillance and pollution tracking vehicle marks the key achievements of this study. The developed collection and surveillance unit holds the potential for further refinement and integration onto various other platforms. They are offering valuable assistance in water body management, coastal surveillance, and pollution tracking. This system opens up new possibilities for comprehensive water body assessments, contributing to the advancement of sustainable and efficient water testing. Through careful sampling efforts, a thorough overview of the substances presents in the water collected from Ayer Keroh Lake has been compiled. This in-depth analysis provides important insights into the lake’s current condition, offering valuable information about its ecological health.

This research explores the role of digital economy in driving agricultural development in the BIMSTEC region, which includes Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Bhutan (with Bhutan excluded due to data limitations) with a particular focus on mobile technologies, computing capacity and internet connectivity which were the most readily available data points for BIMSTEC. Using a combination of document analysis, and panel data analysis with the data covering 10 years (2012–2021), the study examines the interplay of key digital technologies with agricultural growth while controlling for factors including water usage, fertilizer consumption, and land temperature and agricultural land area. The analysis incorporates additional variables such as infrastructure development, credit to agriculture, investment in agricultural research, and education level. The findings reveal a strong positive correlation between mobile technology, Internet and computing capacity in BIMSTEC. This study underscores that digital tools are pivotal in enhancing agricultural productivity, yet their impact is significantly combined with investment in infrastructure and education. This study suggests that digital solutions, when strategically integrated with broader socio-economic factors can effectively challenges in developing countries, particularly in rural and underserved regions. This research contributes to the growing body of literature on digital economy in agriculture, highlighting how digital technologies can foster agricultural productivity in developing countries.

The Hungarian tourism and hospitality industry has faced serious challenges in recent years. The tourism and hospitality sector has been confronted with severe challenges in recent years. Even after the end of the pandemic, the industry has not seen the expected recovery, as rising inflation, declining discretionary income and a lack of foreign tourists have further hampered the industry. The hotel market in Budapest in particular has been significantly affected by these developments. Despite the difficulties, investors continue to see opportunities in the market. One example is the purchase by a group of real estate investors of an under-utilised leisure centre in District VII, which they intend to convert into a hotel. Our study is part of this project and its primary objective is to define the parameters of the future hotel and analyse the market opportunities and challenges. Our research focuses on the hotel market in Budapest and uses methods such as benchmarking, STEEP and SWOT analyses, as well as four in-depth interviews with key players in the market. The benchmarking examined the operations of hotels in the capital, while the in-depth interviews provided practical experience and insider perspectives. On the basis of the interviews and analyses, the study identifies possible directions for improvement and factors for competitive advantage.

Background: The prevalence of anxiety among college students is a growing global concern, with a median prevalence of 32%. This study addresses the need for effective interventions within an educational policy framework to alleviate anxiety and promote mental health among college students. Objective: The study aims to evaluate the impact of breathing relaxation exercises and tactile art therapy on college students' self-understanding and psychological well-being, providing reference information for policies and practices in mental health education. Methods: We enrolled 10 college students from X University in South Korea, dividing them into an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group underwent 10 sessions of breathing exercises and tactile art therapy, while the control group received standard psychological counseling. Pre- and post-tests assessed breathing function, self-understanding, and psychological well-being. Results: The experimental group demonstrated significant improvements in breathing function, particularly in forced vital capacity (FVC), and in psychological well-being, as measured by the Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWBS). Sub-factors such as safety, goal orientation, and self-acceptance within self-understanding, self-acceptance, positive relationships, purpose in life, and environmental mastery within psychological well-being, showed notable enhancements. In contrast, the control group did not show significant effects in terms of FVC and FEV1（p > 0.05）, and there were no statistically significant differences in the various sub-factors of self-understanding and psychological well-being. Conclusion: The study demonstrates that integrating breathing relaxation exercises and tactile art therapy into educational policy can significantly reduce anxiety and enhance the psychological well-being of college students. These findings suggest that such interventions can be effective components of a comprehensive educational policy aimed at improving student mental health.