Hungry? Have Some More Content!

Made Essential Reading on 08 February 2010 Felix Hemsley

There’s no denying that changes in the digital space have enabled huge strides to be made with multimedia content and the digitalisation of traditional content. The question is where is this heading and what changes are afoot?

I am predictably going to reference the new Apple iPad. How could anyone avoid this topic…it’s being talked about everywhere, apparently changing the world as we know it! Ok, so maybe it’s not going to go quite that far, however what the iPad stands for is a big deal. People are always looking for new ways to become more mobile in the world, identifying ways of having everything they need upon their person in the most discreet, unobtrusive ways. First there was the iPhone and the multitude of apps on offer to centralise our digital lives, and now the iPad. Its gleaming LED screen and sleek design offers even the most discerning fashionista a means to remain hooked up to the digital world.

Whilst video remains the richest of media, the iPad looks to traditional media, text. The re-invention of the ‘book’ into e-readers was one of the fastest growing technology hardware adoptions and wish list additions of recent years. With its all round capabilities, the iPad platform is sure to be a hit with the trend setters of the ‘tennies’, sitting in their coffee bars watching the world pass by…or rather, missing the world pass by as they stare intently at their glare-less LED screens.

Ok, so it may seem like this has evolved into an iPad homage post, which it isn’t. My point is that whilst media may change, and the forms in which it arrives encompassing everything from text to video, the true driving factor for content consumption is content delivery. Be it an app on the iPhone or iPad, laptops in coffee shops or the TV ranks in the gym, the overriding factor is convenience. People will always be hungry for information, and the challenge is putting this into A) an engaging form and B) an accessible medium.

Technology is now creating solutions for problems that people didn’t realise existed. The question is, what’s the next problem you’re not yet aware that you have?