Trendsurfing: Tech trends (The Times)
By David Rowan
A year ago, when this column began, a respected magazine editor offered a quiet word of warning. "Good luck trying to find your trends," he said with a world-weary headshake. "The first few ideas will be obvious enough, but in my experience you'll soon struggle to find any real innovations."
Ha! In fact, the tough part of writing this column has been to decide which trends to squeeze out each week to keep to the word limit. There are just so many new ideas emerging from the worlds of business, marketing and technology that 52 columns a year barely skim the surface.
From pod hotels to pop-up stores, sensory branding to the Scoubidou craze, the recent pace of invention has been extraordinary. It's partly the marketing world's desperation to reach an atomised audience in creative new ways, partly the new social possibilities offered by digital technologies. And even if some of these trends disappear as quickly as they emerged - how many more "advertise on my forehead" auctions can eBay take? - there are enough, from video blogging to "long tail" retailing, to last us for years. So, with thanks for your tips, here are some of Trendsurfing's favourite tech-related themes that somehow haven't yet found space. If you spot more over the next year, do e-mail me your insights. Because readers-as-journalists is a hot new trend, apparently.
Podcasting goes mainstream: Since we first mentioned podcasts last November, these amateur audio web shows have shaken up the professionals. Back then, there were just a couple of hundred Google references to podcasting; today, there are almost ten million. A big boost came when Apple rejigged its iTunes software to make it easy to download shows. The current growth area? "Porncasts", whose hosts share erotic stories and review pornographic websites. Just wait till the Daily Mail discovers there is no mechanism for keeping out the under-18s.
HDTV redefining beauty: High-definition television does wonders for picture quality, with up to ten times the resolution of standard sets. The trouble is that the razor-sharp image also highlights every wrinkle and facial blemish. As the sets have become cheaper, and more programme-makers have switched over to HDTV, cosmetic surgeons in the US have reported rising demand from thirtysomething newsreaders demanding Botox. One trade newsletter even maintains a list of the "ten scariest celebrities in HDTV" - among them Tommy Lee Jones, Cher and Keith Richards. Cameron Diaz with make-up might look great on conventional TV - but will her skin pass the more demanding aesthetic standard that's emerging?
Online confessionals: Murdered next-door's dog? Lied about your job qualifications? Now you can confess anonymously to the world via the booming online confessional. These strangely compelling websites - such as www.postsecret.com, www.notproud.com and www.e-admit.com - have become almost an art form over the past year. We're still awaiting the first newscaster to admit secretly to some HDTV-inspired nipping and tucking.
Virtual girlfriends: For a while, lonely Japanese salarymen have been able to "date" imaginary cocktail waitresses or flight attendants who sent love notes to their mobile phones. Now the virtual girlfriend (and boyfriend) is going global, thanks to companies such as Artificial Life, based in Hong Kong. If you want to win your virtual girlfriend's heart, you have to seduce her via your 3G phone with flowers, chocolates and small talk. She'll text and voice-message you back - and best of all, she looks flawless on your high-resolution colour screen.
(The Times Magazine, August 27 2005)
. . . AND READ MORE TRENDSURFING COLUMNS HERE . . .
A year ago, when this column began, a respected magazine editor offered a quiet word of warning. "Good luck trying to find your trends," he said with a world-weary headshake. "The first few ideas will be obvious enough, but in my experience you'll soon struggle to find any real innovations."
Ha! In fact, the tough part of writing this column has been to decide which trends to squeeze out each week to keep to the word limit. There are just so many new ideas emerging from the worlds of business, marketing and technology that 52 columns a year barely skim the surface.
From pod hotels to pop-up stores, sensory branding to the Scoubidou craze, the recent pace of invention has been extraordinary. It's partly the marketing world's desperation to reach an atomised audience in creative new ways, partly the new social possibilities offered by digital technologies. And even if some of these trends disappear as quickly as they emerged - how many more "advertise on my forehead" auctions can eBay take? - there are enough, from video blogging to "long tail" retailing, to last us for years. So, with thanks for your tips, here are some of Trendsurfing's favourite tech-related themes that somehow haven't yet found space. If you spot more over the next year, do e-mail me your insights. Because readers-as-journalists is a hot new trend, apparently.
Podcasting goes mainstream: Since we first mentioned podcasts last November, these amateur audio web shows have shaken up the professionals. Back then, there were just a couple of hundred Google references to podcasting; today, there are almost ten million. A big boost came when Apple rejigged its iTunes software to make it easy to download shows. The current growth area? "Porncasts", whose hosts share erotic stories and review pornographic websites. Just wait till the Daily Mail discovers there is no mechanism for keeping out the under-18s.
HDTV redefining beauty: High-definition television does wonders for picture quality, with up to ten times the resolution of standard sets. The trouble is that the razor-sharp image also highlights every wrinkle and facial blemish. As the sets have become cheaper, and more programme-makers have switched over to HDTV, cosmetic surgeons in the US have reported rising demand from thirtysomething newsreaders demanding Botox. One trade newsletter even maintains a list of the "ten scariest celebrities in HDTV" - among them Tommy Lee Jones, Cher and Keith Richards. Cameron Diaz with make-up might look great on conventional TV - but will her skin pass the more demanding aesthetic standard that's emerging?
Online confessionals: Murdered next-door's dog? Lied about your job qualifications? Now you can confess anonymously to the world via the booming online confessional. These strangely compelling websites - such as www.postsecret.com, www.notproud.com and www.e-admit.com - have become almost an art form over the past year. We're still awaiting the first newscaster to admit secretly to some HDTV-inspired nipping and tucking.
Virtual girlfriends: For a while, lonely Japanese salarymen have been able to "date" imaginary cocktail waitresses or flight attendants who sent love notes to their mobile phones. Now the virtual girlfriend (and boyfriend) is going global, thanks to companies such as Artificial Life, based in Hong Kong. If you want to win your virtual girlfriend's heart, you have to seduce her via your 3G phone with flowers, chocolates and small talk. She'll text and voice-message you back - and best of all, she looks flawless on your high-resolution colour screen.
(The Times Magazine, August 27 2005)
. . . AND READ MORE TRENDSURFING COLUMNS HERE . . .
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