Information Mobility

The ebb and flow of technological innovation is always most visible through the divergence and convergence of solutions to a particular set of use cases. Solutions diverge as innovation flourishes in new area where there are no standards and few rules. A plethora of options appears, then conventions are established. These gradually harden into standards, as dominant players emerge, and innovation ebbs. Or, more commonly in technology, flows into the next use case: ecommerce was the innovation ground until Amazon and eBay perfected it and the innovation moved to mobile.

In information technology the innovation use case, right now, is consumer connectivity. Social networks are the most direct symptom of this craving need. But it's clear that the need is broader than our friends' news feeds. 'Information mobility' is probably the most accurate label I can think of to describe the current innovation battleground.

The cloud and big data are simply grist for the mill: essential ingredients to staking a claim in the information mobility market and harvesting results. Example: it seems every app on my phone wants to see my contacts list. Why? Because it's effectively a prospects list for them. That's why every consumer-oriented company on the planet wants you to download their app: they want your rolodex. And we let them have it - cheaply. For the sake of crushing electronic candy.

Mobile devices are starting to converge on standards. You can still get a touchscreen for any size from 3" to 12", but the newest phones are congregating around 5"-6" and tablets 8"-10". With this convergence, the walls between vendor software ecosystems are increasingly being tested because people want their information anywhere. They want information mobility. If they cannot use your service from any device they may choose, why should they pay for it?