2010 will be a transformative year for technology

IPG Emerging Media Lab's 2010 Trends We believe 2010 will be a transformative year for technology that will likely impact the consumer experience dramatically for the next decade. Not since 1999 have consumers, techies, and marketers had so many reasons to celebrate. That was the year we began to see unprecedented broadband growth, the year the first mobile data network hit (in Japan), and we saw Google take its first steps (founded just four months before start of 1999 – VC funding came in 1999), not to mention the introduction of P2P (with the founding of Napster).

2010 promises to be even more explosive: The products and solutions coming to market in 2010 will impact the way we interact with our mobile, PC, and content devices for years to come.  Here are seven reasons to believe: Continue reading “2010 will be a transformative year for technology”

4G and apps dominate CTIA

CTIA 2009CTIA 2009 was a much smaller show than last year, which was a big talking point at the show.  Despite the reduction in size, the show had two big stories to tell: 4G and apps.

The 4G story began with Verizon CEO Seidenberg’s keynote, where he mentioned Verizon’s plans to roll out Long Term Evolution (LTE), a 4G technology, by year end in select markets.  On the show floor, those three letters took on a much greater meaning, and were everywhere.  At LG’s booth, I saw high quality HD video streaming over LTE connections that were four times faster than peak cable broadband.

For marketers, LTE is going to make things very, very interesting.  Continue reading “4G and apps dominate CTIA”

Why Obama’s DTV delay is a bad idea

(iStock)There’s talk in Washington of a delay of the transition to digital TV. I can understand the reasoning – the federal program that offered $40 vouchers for those who want to buy the devices needed to pick up digital signals, ran out of money.

While I sympathize with the reasoning, delaying the transition is a very bad idea. Here are four reasons why:

(1) It turns a minor bungle (the underfunded voucher program) into a much bigger bungle. For years now, the switchover date has been drilled into our heads. To push back the date is going to cause more confusion than just biting the bullet and going through with it.

(2) Second, the transition has been, if anything, far too overhyped. According to a recent report by Nielsen, only 5.7% of households are unprepared for the transition.

Continue reading “Why Obama’s DTV delay is a bad idea”