Robert V. Kozinets is an academic who has developed methods and theories that are widely used around the world. In 1995, in a study of fan utopian community, he invented netnography, an application of cultural anthropology to digital networks. Since that time, he has taught digital research methods combined with marketing and branding theories, practices, and ethical praxis to academics as well as to companies such as Lowe's, AMEX, Nissan, TD Bank, Campbell Soup, L'Oréal, Sony, Merck, and many others. Asking questions about technology, entertainment, utopia, and desire, his research pushed the boundaries open on a more cultural, moral, interconnected, and passionate form of studying and theorising the new media economy. His method changed market research, and his works have been cited over 24,000 times according to Google Scholar. He currently holds the Jayne and Hans Hufschmid Chair of Digital and Business Communication at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and Marshall School of Business.