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This is an edited book that fills a gap in knowledge by providing a comprehensive view of esports practice from the Asia and Pacific region. The volume looks at the development of esports through the interconnections between institutions, industries, players, and society, across the Asia-Pacific. Over the last two decades, the Asia-Pacific region has been central to the growth and development of esports. The value of this book lies in its ability to provide a view of esport from countries that are currently underrepresented in the literature such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines and Australia while still integrating chapters looking at more well-researched countries such as China, Korea, and Japan. Through its diverse case studies, the book serves as a resource for scholars and educators worldwide who seek diverse examples with which to improve understanding of the esports phenomenon and the inclusiveness of media and communication curricula. chapters ¿Introduction to Esports in the Asia-Pacific¿ and ¿Conclusions to Esports in the AsiäPacific¿ are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

This book evaluates Central Asian regionalism by analyzing the impact of Russia and China on physical infrastructure in the region. The narrative builds a picture of the nature of the two powers' influence on the development of regional connectivity in Central Asia. The study covers the 30-year period since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, with a focus on the last decade preceding the global pandemic. Qualitative research methods, i.e., documentary analysis, media analysis, and elite interviews, are implemented to explore how activities of Russia and China impact regional cooperation among Central Asian states. Multiple case studies of projects in the networked sectors of infrastructure, i.e., transportation, energy, and telecommunications, are used to build the argument and demonstrate the ways in which Russia's and China's engagement influence regional connectivity. The book is of interest to the scholars who study international relations in Eurasia, major power relations, Sino-Russian relations, China foreign policy, international institutions in Asia, multilateralism, and regionalism. The empirical depth of the book attracts attention of area studies scholars who focus on Central Asia, Central Eurasia, and any of the five Central Asian states. Additionally, the scholars who analyze the roles of hard infrastructure find the book particularly important. The in-depth cases on multilateral financial institutions and regional networks, particularly energy, transportation, and telecommunication, are of great value to those interested in these respective sectors.

Through engaging media coverage of the public lives of Bollywood actresses, this book unveils understandings of idealized femininity and gender within this cultural context. Beyond its own borders, such a context is unique given the global relevance of content from and about Bollywood with members of the diaspora as well as those culturally Indian individuals that are no longer part of the diaspora. This book thus engages these actresses as global Indian celebrities who are framed and presented as contemporary urban Indian exemplars of gender via media coverage about them. The book therefore offers a robust and detailed case study of the Bollywood star system so as to demonstrate how the nuances of this unique cultural context influence the dimensions of postfeminism and celebrity culture therein.