Just so I'm on record for saying so, the next revolution after the cloud is done, is with peripherals. There's going to be a lot of fabulous interest and I think some very good money to be made as computing goes utility. But never forget peripherals. I'm going to make an example of three.
1. Guitar Hero
The gaming industry
was set on fire with the introduction of the Wii, but I poohed it and I
was right. My point was that the most intense gaming experiences are
not done with broad sweeping motions and that the people who would be
the finest gamers in the world would have a lot more in common with
musicians than with athletes or soldiers. In other words, eye-hand
coordination in a gaming world can and should be reduced to your hands
and fingers, not you arms and legs. As exciting as Project Natal is,
I'm not sure I want to hold my arms out for an hour playing a driving
game with an imaginary steering wheel. In fact what revolutionized the
gaming industry that is still delivering is the creation of the guitars
and drums for Guitar Hero. In this you have an intermediate complexity
of eye-hand in a dumbed down instrument and it has generated new
leagues of fans.
2. iPhone
You already know what's
great about the iPhone. But now just think of it as the thing that makes
everything that AT&T does seem interesting. In fact, you could sell
AT&T on the basis of what the iIPhone puts into your hand. And now it
is widely known that AT&T is bashed because it does support
everything the iPhone does.
3. Nike & Oakley
Huh?
Actually these two are the tip of the iceberg. What you really need to
understand is all Nike and Oakley do are make gear. But the attention
they pay to the detail of the their products is extraordinary. You
don't know or care about the infrastructure that enables them, you care
very much about what you touch and what touches your skin. These are
high touch vendors. They are outfitters. Outfitters enable the
outdoors. Without the Nike shoes, nobody cares about the running track.
This is all about gear. It's about user interface. When it comes to networks, the edge is the center. Delivery networks are plumbing and like the New York City water supply, you need to accomplish massive engineering perfection ahead of time, but people spend the money on the sink, the faucet, the Jacuzzi down the tail, and it will be the beauty of the peripherals that increase the demand for the network. That will be the business driver.
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