A new report says the often elusive technological convergence that we have heard so much about may finally be here. From the National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship:
A new White Paper from the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) says that convergence is finally here, and that it will have profound effects on business. The study focused on key technology trends such as the emergence of always-on multi-use devices, and the delegation of network control away from the center and toward a network's edges. The emergence of this next-generation internet protocol network means is going to trigger a revolutionary boom in new products, services, and technologies. This should trigger tremendous productivity gains, but it will also challenge incumbent industries, such as cable, telecommunications and information technology. These shifts will in turn create major public policy debates over privacy, spectrum use, and market competition.
There seems to be a lot of support for this opinion in industry. Cisco just announced their purchase of Scientific-Atlanta in a move that will move them out of the back room of business information systems and into our living rooms with hubs to run the next generation of integrated technologies. From CIO Today:
That convergence can already be seen in DVD players that also play CDs. Yet the holy grail is an easy-to-use gadget that handles everything from photos to TV. Cisco says the set-top box is that device."We will be the leader in...content, media and data in the home," says Vice President Ned Hooper.
This will be a world-wide economic race that will go beyond the battle for the box on the top of your television. India is not just looking at convergence within telecommunications, but also with bio-technology and nano-technology. Korea is also vying to be in the mix. Convergence will not just be about our homes, but will also include our mobile technologies.
And as we have seen with other technological breakthroughs, this one will spawn countless opportunities for small businesses that offer products and services that take advantage of these trends. A few start-ups will even become part of the breakthrough process.
There is one dark cloud on the horizon: the United Nations. The meetings that just closed in Tunis will not just determine who controls the Internet, but who will set the standards for all aspects of convergence and who will pay for new technologies around the world. The agreements reached are quite worrisome. It looks like we have taken one step closer to the UN controlling the Internet and mechanisms being put in place for world taxes that will redistribute money to assure the equal spread of digital technology around the globe.
If there is a wet blanket that could be thrown over the entrepreneurial economic boom that should follow the emergence of real convergence, it is the regulation and taxes that the UN is about to put in place.
