Digital Technologies and Their Use for the Development of Cultural Heritage in Europe and Romania: Advantages and Disadvantages

The Internet and the digital applications are now part of our daily lives. Digital technologies have become essential to work, to learn, to socialize, to be able to access various products and services (for business, for entertainment, for cultural tourism, for education, for health, etc.). The evolution of new technologies has generated significant changes in all fields, which has led to an increasing awareness of the importance of the role that technological progress has in today's economy. Similarly, technological developments have opened up new possibilities for the digitization of cultural heritage, especially for the purpose of its conservation, restoration, research, but also for the purpose of expanding the online access and for its reuse by tourists. In response to the current digital challenge, this article aims to debate the issue of the use of digital technologies in cultural tourism (at European and national level), by presenting and analyzing some recent statistics in this field. At the same time, the ways in which digital tools can contribute or not to the development of cultural heritage will be researched, in order to identify the advantages and disadvantages that may arise from the online exposure of cultural resources. In this way, the data presented will capture both the positive characteristics, but will highlight, at the same time, the existing vulnerabilities and risks, in order to be able to evaluate the consequences of technological progress in the field of cultural tourism.