From show-stopping new gadgets to the social networking craze, 2007 ushered in a host of technologies that will change how business is done. Peter Griffin tips the trends to watch.
KEY POINTS:
The big socialisers
You've heard of Facebook.com, the website that became the poster child for the social media revolution that took hold last year. From a small office in Palo Alto, California, Facebook has in four years attracted 60 million users, many of whom spend time on the site every day messaging friends and browsing photo albums.
Many businesses are now tapping into the networking potential of Facebook, creating customer forums for product feedback and fostering online communities of users.
Late last year, Microsoft acquired a 1.6 per cent stake in Facebook for US$240 million ($310 million), valuing the website at US$15 billion.
Of course it's not worth that much, but the willingness of Microsoft to part with such a large amount of money shows the business potential it sees in social networking. Facebook opened its platform last May to allow software developers to create widgets that plug into it and while Beacon, its marketing initiative, got off to a rocky start in November, raising privacy concerns among members, Facebook's potential as an advertising money-spinner is huge. The social media trend will only strengthen this year as Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn, Bebo and new players like PlayStation Home look to squeeze revenue from their users.
Collaboration
That social networking theme is also being applied to how businesses are run. Companies increasingly consist of teams spread out across the city, if not the country or the world. To keep productivity up, they're investing in collaboration tools that offer shared digital workspaces, web conferencing and project management software.
Basecamp from 37 Signals and Central Desktop are Web 2.0 type collaboration platforms that don't cost the earth and make online collaboration easier. The Skype instant messaging, file sharing, phone and video conferencing is a useful free tool to better network with your colleagues.
At a corporate level, the notion of "unified communications" really took off last year.
Internet spend-up
Last year was the year that online retailing really gained some momentum as the process of e-commerce became simple enough for the masses. According to Neilsen Online, 1.3 million Kiwi web users spent $585 million online in November on new and used goods and services - that's around $450 each. A large chunk of the spending is on aeroplane tickets - Air New Zealand alone booked $1 billion in travel through its website in its last financial period, though accommodation, electronics, books, music and clothing are popular categories. So far online marketplaces such as Ferrit.co.nz have failed to fire, though Trade Me forges on with its auctions and classified listings. This year expect more online channels for web-savvy businesses to emerge, both in the business-to-business space and in the consumer domain. Selling online lets businesses cut costs, learn more about their customers and reach a global audience more easily.
Webify it
As confidence in transacting over the web grows, so too does the trend towards software-as-a-service, where software that usually sits on your desktop PC resides on the internet.
On a global scale, Google is paving the way, delivering everything from email to word processing via the internet. In the business sphere, Salesforce.com has been a leader, while local software companies like ActionThis and Xero are basing their businesses entirely on the internet. Doing so has its advantages - software can be updated regularly from a central location and online collaboration is easier. Company or personal information can be accessed from any computer with a web browser.
Think of the convenience internet banking has lent us and consider what other parts of your business could benefit from the same type of treatment.
Greening of it
Behind the scenes, a revolution got under way in the tech sector last year as IT vendors focused on making their products smaller, more efficient and less power-hungry. Pure economics are driving the trend - energy costs are increasing and businesses are simply running out of space in their data centres where they house the computer servers that run their businesses.
As such, the buzzword last year was "virtualisation". Software is used to run a myriad applications on the same servers, allowing businesses to consolidate the number of servers they have. It means fewer servers, but they run at fuller capacity. They use less power and real estate and require less maintenance.
VMware is the global leader in virtualisation and undertook a hugely successful stock market listing in the US last year.
But everyone from Microsoft to Oracle is playing in the space with their own virtualisation platforms.
Hot gadgets open up the world at a touch
The surface
In its current form, Microsoft's new device is a coffee table with a computer screen built into it, but the Surface's full potential is yet to be realised. Essentially it introduces "multi-touch" technology to computing so hand gestures, handwriting or interaction with physical objects can be used to interact with a computer. It means computer user interfaces become more natural - less use of the keyboard and mouse, and touch-screen computers can be built into your surroundings. Initially the Surface is likely to appear in hotels and shops, but expect it to end up in homes before long.
Apple iPhone
Its touch-screen interface has allowed you to do more on the mobile more easily and the innovative use of Apple's Safari browser has brought popular web services like YouTube and Google Maps to the mobile phone. The iPhone's influence on mobile phone design has already been immense. This year will see the mobile phone in general become a more useful device for accessing the internet as phone makers follow the iPhone's lead.
Asus Eee PC
The stripped-down, lightweight laptop the Eee PC, proved a hit last year as consumers opted for convenience and portability in a computer over processing power and features. With flash memory used to store your content and memory cards able to be plugged in to boast storage space, the Eee PC does away with the bulky and power-draining hard drive. Its wireless capability also plays into the hands of web users who are increasingly storing content online. Available with the Linux operating system, the laptop is also offering a cheap alternative to Windows. Expect to see more low-cost, ultra-portable laptops this year.
Playstation 3
Sony trailed its rivals Microsoft and Nintendo in the video game console market last year, but in its PS3 console it has the device with the potential to this year become the media hub for the home. With a high-definition Blu-ray drive, ports for media cards and plugging in cameras and music players, an internet connection and a hard drive for storing music and videos, the PS3 delivers much more than gaming. This year could see the PS3 become a more significant internet-connected device as movies are made available as downloads and an adaptor allowing the PS3 to be used as a Freeview digital recorder is released.
