Electronic publishing poses a threat - however distant - to print
publishing. Napster-like peer to peer networks undermine the
foundations of the music and film industries. Open source software is
encroaching on the turf of proprietary applications. It is very easy
and cheap to publish and distribute content on the Internet, the
barriers to entry are virtually nil.
As processors grow speedier, storage larger, applications
multi-featured, broadband access all-pervasive, and the Internet goes
wireless - individuals are increasingly able to emulate much larger
scale organizations successfully. A single person, working from home,
with less than $2000 worth of equipment - can publish a Webzine, author
software, write music, shoot digital films, design products, or
communicate with millions and his work will be indistinguishable from
the offerings of the most endowed corporations and institutions.
Obviously, no individual can yet match the capital assets, the
marketing clout, the market positioning, the global branding, the sales
organization, and the distribution network of the likes of Sony, or
Microsoft. In an age of information glut, it is still the marketing,
the media campaign, the distribution, and the sales that determine the
economic outcome.
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