Consolidation: the assimilation of different systems, data, products, units etc., or even disparate formats, to create a new, unified entity. In the last 10 years, we have witnessed the power of
consolation (think MySpace.com and News Corp.) and the pitfalls associated with it as well (think AOL and Time Warner). No market or industrial sector is immune to consolidation. The question one must
always ask is: what is the value of the combined parts? Well, that depends.
I would like to bring to your attention a few technologies that are helping to take the art of
consolidation to a whole new level:
Applian Technologies--The product is called WM Recorder 11. A client-side application, this little piece of software, once launched, will
automatically record any streaming audio or video that is played on the user's PC with no user intervention. All the recordings are saved as media files that can be watched at any time. WM Recorder 11
records all the standard video and audio formats, including password-protected streams, and has the built-in capability of a scheduling function that allows users to record up to 50 streams
simultaneously.
Nokia--Nokia, the handset manufacturer, just completed the purchase of Loudeye, a veteran digital music distributor, for $60 million. People believe that Nokia
is shoring up assets in order to better compete with Apple as it ventures into the mobile space.
Rollyo--A search engine that allows you to aggregate your searches and share
them with your friends. The site lets you explore and save searchrolls (custom search engines) created by the Rollyo community and share your knowledge on a particular set of topics.
Blurb--A company that has developed a software application and an online community for the aspiring author in all of us. Using state-of-the-art publishing software, authors are able to share
their books with friends and family.
Bones in Motion (BiM)--BiM has created BiM Active, a suite of mobile applications geared toward the active lifestyle of cell phone users.
This application lets runners, cyclist and walkers wirelessly capture and monitor their activity in real time using a GPS service. Currently, the company has a partnership with Sprint and Nextel.
The service transforms that phone into a virtual coach and offers users feedback during the time that they are exercising. Then all information is uploaded to a personal portal where users can chart
their progress and share information about exercise routes, and rate and review information.
So you see, consolidation is happening all around us--from the way we search, to the way we
store and access media, to how we can share information about a story we have conceived--all the way through to how fast we ran that 5 kilometers. I expect that this trend of sharing and consolidating
user-generated media and technology will continue to evolve at a rapid rate. After all, with broadband use fast approaching 50 percent of the population and wireless surpassing that, the market is
ripe for innovations. The question that remains, really, is what is the value of all of this? Excellent question, my dear reader! I suppose that depends on who you are. You tell me.