Wednesday, February 2, 2000
converged "local cluster" of CE equipment in the home will likely have several optional interfaces, or a soft interface that could be programmed by the users (Mary likes voice activated, Dad still prefers the 4-in-1 remote, John uses his mobile phone keypad to annoy Mary). An over the air interface in the home like Bluetooth could go out to the car and drive with you, plug right back in when you're in the office, and rejoin the family network at night.
Helmut Stein, Nokia Multimedia Network Terminals CTO once pointed out that with a MNT (what Nokia calls its STBs) as the network connection and CPU, all you need to be able to use all manner of digital, converged services is some kind of display and audio (output), storage, keyboard (input) and interfaces. Hey, we are thinking of a new architecture remarkably close to what a PC already has in its specific form factor.
In cellular phones, Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs) have existed a long time. Now with technologies like WAP and Bluetooth, tiny CE boxes with screens, processors, memory, storage, headphones and keyboards will be everywhere. And so will content rich portals. Maybe Sims will become wearable technology, connecting with all your CE interfaces.
About the Author....
Martin Jacklin has been working in various related authoring and communications positions in digital technology for 9 years with pioneering companies.
He is currently consulting with companies on digital standards strategies, technical marketing and press relations and is a regular speaker on the topic of Interactive TV and Convergence.
[email protected]
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With these different pieces of gear communicating with each other more or less transparently, as you move through your routine from "lean back" to "lean forward" to "hanging out" interactivity, you take personalised services with you.
But then, it's not all about CE devices, it's about following consumers and presenting them with interaction on demand, content on demand.
All the new transaction based business models (like the one behind Sony's DVD hyperlinks) depend on building a loyalty relationship directly between consumers and content providers across the various delivery media. A content provider like Lucasfilm profits more from retail than the box office. Their most lucrative content is merchandising, not to forget the DVD release...
It's very logical - content rules and all the distribution media are converging.
It seems to me that Nokia - probably from long experience in personal telephony - understands the process of convergence - which can never end, as long as we remain individuals!
Convergence is perhaps a supertrend which finds expression in the ménage a trois of TVs and Computers and Telephones. The thought occurs to me that the day after our networks, devices and media converge, we will converge with each other. Maybe that's the trend.
Seems intellectual property rights are the biggest issue for the coming decade. Look at the recent MP3 case, and thousands of home pages, and the IPR of the material there. Philosophy will be the battleground. What is intellectual property when we are all content aggregators?
So, it's gonna be called "the zeroes", huh?
