May 19, 2005

The Technology Fuels the Service

Read this short story about what’s happening at the Algonquin in New York and consider this: has there ever been a hotel in the history of ever that offered walkmen or a cd boombox in a similar manner? The Ipod’s information dispersal capabilities are becoming more apparent every day. So much so that the device’s popularity is actually INFORMING the way several industries are engineering new business models. I never would have thought about listening to audio books at a hotel, but the chance to try out an ipod and listen to books while I’m on vacation is a great idea. THe only problem is that ipods will get so affordable as the market gets flooded that the freshness seal on a service like this is limited. Then again, when EVERYONE has an ipod, I envision kiosks all over the place where you can jack yourself in and download information on almost every business or service imaginable.

Think about it, not only will you be able to hook up your ipod into the Algonquin terminal and hear a bunch of history on the place, you’ll also be able to go to a museum, mall, park or whatever, download information and use it for whatever purpose you need. Libraries may even be replaced by a huge room of terminals with which people can download their books (or ebooks if you still like reading) directly, and for free. You’ll go to an airport and get automatic downloads of any weather or flight updates you need (which is more convenient then nervously checking a screen every few minutes). We’re living the Will Gibson future more and more every minute of every day. Information will be so available and so portable that the sense of empowerment will be insane!