Friday, March 26, 2010

E-Books Continue to Grow

Predictions as to the market for e-books vary from 2% of the total book market over the next five years to 25%. My prediction is that the higher number will be closer to the mark than the lower one. eBooks have just gotten started, and already there is a plethora of readers out there and people are paying attention.

What is emerging is that people so far are indicating that they wish to consume their books on a variety of devices, ranging from PC's to tablets to smart phones, including the specialty readers such as the Kindle.

Kobo of Toronto, an increasingly notable player in the ebook market, has it right in this respect. They have just released a new reader to be sold in Borders stores in the US. presumably to be made available in other markets, such as in their home base. Kobo also has a "Powered by Kobo" technique which will enable a variety of devices play ebooks.

Watch this arena. It will be a major one. And check out this article on Kobo.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Another Step towards Convergence of TV and the Web

Ever since the Web got really started in the early nineties, its followers have been predicting various kinds of convergence, including computers and TV, telephones and computers, Computers and kitchen appliances, etc. Every day we see new evidence of these convergences taking place. The recent explosion of smart phones is just another big step in that continuum.

In another potentially big step, Google has announced, along with several partners, that it is working to have its web applications to be made available on televisions, using its Android operating system along with a new version of its Chrome Browser. Whether it actually reaches market mass is an open question, but the move is significant because it represents a significant convergence initiative by a major player. Even if it doesn't work, it will work eventually, because that's the future of the World Wide Web. See a press report here.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Shopping made Easier

Finding products may get a whole lot easier if Google and Milo.com are successful with their new mobile version of the Google Product Search feature. The idea is that if you want a specific product, like a HP Photosmart Printer, in a specific city, like Mississauga, then you can use the search tool to find which stores in the area currently have the specified printer in stock. Having this app on your mobile phone, of course, makes it possible to make these searches while on the run.

Milo and Google have enrolled several retailers in this service for trial runs. Eventually, they hope to have more retailers in the fold, which may make the app a necessary part of every shopper's tool kit.

Click here for an article on this application.

Thursday, March 04, 2010

Boeing's Supply Chain Management Headache

Boeing began building the much hyped Boeing 787, a large innovative aircraft built of carbon composites rather than aluminum approximately seven years ago. The company outsourced heavily, as is common in this technology enabled age, but they carried it to an extreme. This led to a whole new world of supply chain management, in which outsourced suppliers were vying for difficult-to-obtain parts and supplies, which the suppliers found hard to provide because of the erratic and unplanned nature of the buying. Eventually Boeing had to take over some of the buying so a reliable supply of parts could be ensured. Boeing's experience with the 787 is a case study in Supply Chain Management in an outsourced environment, and carries some important lessons for other companies. For a good report on the building of the 787, see this article in Technology Review.

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

How People Read the News

An interesting survey by Pew Research Center sheds some interesting light on how people get their news. No longer do they rely on a single source, such as a newspaper or TV. Indeed, Newspapers come low on the list for many. The internet dominates news gathering. But not just a favourite website. People tend to scan news items when the spirit moves them or when they have an extra minute of two. 33% of cell phone users read at least some of their news on their phones. Many use various websites, which they seem to check on an opportunistic basis.

There seems to be a trend towards increased use of mobile internet sources, such as smart phones for news access. Since the power of mobile internet devices is growing quickly and their popularity increasing, one would expect this trend to continue. You can read a summary of the survey on the Pew website.