The Future of Work Is Services: So Where Is the Future of Services? - Derek Thompson The White House likes to talk about manufacturing, and it's easy to fetishize the honor in "making things," but when you get right down to it, it's a services world, and we're all just living in it. The manufacturing sector makes up about a tenth of GDP. It's a crucial, productive, and fiery tenth. But it's just a tenth. The vast majority of us are working for the government, administering health care, serving food, manning an aisle, or doing something else while sitting in front of a computer for eight hours a day. The Services Economy isn't a new development, but it's deepening with each passing decade. The next decade will probably look like the last few decades, but even more so. By 2020, these jobs are projected to make up "more than roughly half of all projected new jobs -- 9.7 million, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics projections," Richard Florida writes on our Cities site. *Which is like manufacturing, in a way, but it's also not really "tradable."
Future Planet – The Future of Services David Tow SYDNEY 15 October 2012. The Director of the Future Planet Research Centre, David Hunter Tow, predicts that the current explosion of new services will trigger the biggest IP treasure hunt in the history of civilisation. The Services Sector is currently in turmoil with thousands of startup companies cashing in on new opportunities to re-engineer traditional ways of doing business- and this is just the beginning. Every process is currently being transformed into a new service- not just in traditional service sectors such as retail, media, education, healthcare, tourism and finance, but also in industry areas such as manufacturing- with made to order 3D printing techniques, medical processing- offering personalised DNA sequencing and diagnostics instantly on an iPhone chip, and inexpensive solar energy and water purification systems cheaply available for domestic use in developing countries. What is catalysing this frenzy and where is it heading? Education Healthcare Finance/Banking
The consumer is becoming an algorithm: is this a good thing? For most of my life, I have heard how we as consumers or citizens have been reduced to "numbers," thanks to technology in a mass-consumer society. Now, take that a step further, and it may be more appropriate to lament that we all have become "algorithms." But there's a silver lining to all this. In a recent LinkedIn post, Don Pepper explains that predictive analytics, applied against Big Data, can deliver more power to consumers. It's long been said that information is power, and an informed consumer can hold a lot of sway in the marketplace. "Many of us don’t appreciate just how empowering big data will soon be for ordinary people.... Witness the rise of services that can track and find the best travel deals. "If you’re considering whether to buy an Apple iPad, Decide.com predicts that the $499 current price for the iPad Gen 4 will likely drop by $53 within the next two weeks (82% confidence).
With Netflix’s 14 Emmy nominations, web programming is here to stay Among the nominees for best television programming announced yesterday was one notable outlier. Netflix, the online video streaming service, received 14 Emmy nominations. The recognition in some ways legitimized web content and led many to speculate about what the success of such shows means for the future of television entertainment. "House of Cards," a 13-episode political drama directed by David Fincher, received nine nominations, including nods for best drama, best actor (Kevin Spacey) and best actress (Robin Wright). Jason Bateman, of the newly-resurrected "Arrested Development," also received a nod for best actor in a comedy. It marks the first time shows not specifically produced for air on television received Emmy nominations in the major categories. Netflix has a long way to go if it hopes to compete with the power players in the television entertainment space: HBO received 108 nominations overall this year. Photo: Netflix
The latest SME trend: Adopting a global mindset? Thanks to the Internet, SMBs can tap in to global markets more readily -- and new research says this is changing the mindset of business owners. A study released by the Oxford Economics research program, sponsored by SAP, says that small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) are making radical changes to their business models in order to cater for global demand. The survey of 2,100 SME executives in 21 countries says SMEs are also competing with larger firms by investing in technology that makes operations more efficient. The study found that fifteen percent of respondents already do business in at least six countries; a major transition from a decade ago. In addition, two-thirds of companies believe that they must embrace "business transformation" to compete. Almost two-thirds strongly believe technology helps businesses achieve longevity and sustainable growth. "The road ahead is well marked for SMEs," said Edward Cone, analyst at Oxford Economics. Read More: Oxford Economics Image credit: Dell
Who’s fueling the luxury goods market? Men. NEW YORK -- What do you get the man who has everything? According to Andrew Apostola, you give him the unexpected. Apostola is founder of Svbscription, a men’s subscription service curated for people with a high appreciation for luxury objects and unique experiences. The company's twin bases in the Brooklyn neighborhood Dumbo and Melbourne, Australia, send out a surprise parcel every three months, containing four to eight exclusive or rare products and experiences from categories including apparel, technology, beauty and design. “This is a man who feels an absence when it comes to the possessions he owns. Since launching in June 2012, subscriber numbers have risen by 50 percent, suggesting the luxury men's market is thriving. Reuters has reported the world's number one and three luxury groups LVMH (LVMH Moët Hennessy) and PPR S.A. More recently the Wall Street Journal announced the U.S. luxury market was bolstering the business for high-end goods purveyors.
Should bus fares be free? As bus fare hikes in Brazil helped spark the largest protests that the country has seen in 20 years (those fare hikes have since been reversed in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro), The Economist has a provocative proposition: make buses free. They come to this conclusion looking at the proof-of-payment fare-collection systems that many transit systems have adopted as a way to make transit systems more efficient. But The Economist says that making transit free would take that efficiency a step further. Here's the argument: Fares bring in a lot of money, but they cost money to collect—6% of the MTA's budget, according to a 2007 report in New York magazine. Transit systems aren't cheap so, of course, the lost fare revenue would have to be made up somehow. Some cities, like Baltimore, have already tried this model -- albeit on a smaller scale. Transit systems can be the most efficient way to get around cities. Maybe buses should be free [The Economist] Photo: Flickr/Alex Drennan
More consumers paying for online news The Internet has habituated us to expect our online news for free, but that is starting to change as more consumers than a year ago are paying for it and as young people purchase via apps on tablets and smartphones, a study shows. "Since our last survey, we've seen a significant rise in the number or respondents paying for online news - albeit from a low base," said the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism in Digital News Report 2013. Reuters reported that 12 percent of U.S. readers said they had paid for digital news in the last year, up from 9 percent a year earlier; 13 percent said they had paid in France, up from 8 percent; and 9 percent paid in the U.K., up from 4 percent. The nine-country survey had exceptions. For instance, the number of people who paid for digital news in Denmark declined. Young people--25-to-34-years old--were "the most willing" to pay across all countries, Reuters noted in the report's "payng for digital news section." More digital media trends:
U.S. cities are building commuter rail, so where are the riders? Last year, demand for public transportation was the second highest since 1957 as Americans took 10.5 billion trips. Every mode of transportation -- from buses to subways to light rail -- saw ridership increases last year. But there's one mode that lags behind the rest, despite cities increasingly investing in them. Commuter rail -- which connects city centers with suburbs -- had the smallest growth of any transit system in the U.S. at 0.5 percent., with 10 out of 28 systems actually losing riders. And it's not like there isn't room to grow as it's the least used transit option behind only trolleys. The biggest problem commuter rail faces is that its customer base lives in far-flung suburbs where cars are used for just about everything. The key? Why would a suburbanite take the train into the city if it's only running hourly? Commuter Rail Ridership Declining Despite Increase in Lines [Governing] Photo: Flickr/tracktwentynine
Internet of Everything to generate profit of $613bn in 2013 A new survey suggests business leaders believe the Internet of Everything (IoE) will result in improved job markets, wages and information security. According to the IoE Value Index study released by Cisco, the Internet of Everything -- the practice of bringing together people, process, data, and physical things to make networked connections more relevant and valuable -- will enable global private-sector business profits to reach at least $613 billion in 2013. The study of 7,500 businesses and IT professionals in 12 countries found that many firms could double IoE profits through greater adoption of business practices, customer approaches and technologies that leverage the concept. Cisco estimates that beyond $613 billion in profit generation, an additional $544 billion could be realized if companies adjusted their strategies to better leverage IoE. The services and manufacturing industries are expected to profit the most with estimated profit levels reaching $158.8bn and $103.1bn.
App reports bad parking and gets you paid If you've ever been irked by a bad parking job or seen a vehicle parked where it shouldn't be, there's now an app for that -- and you can receive a bounty to boot. A Canadian start-up called SpotSquad has developed an app that crowdsources parking enforcement, in a pilot with the Winnipeg city government. The app automates the process of reporting bad parking jobs in private lots by using GPS and character recognition to collect identifying license plate information. Participants receive a portion of the fine paid if a citation is issued to the vehicle's owner. Fox News reported today that the pilot program would begin in July. It could be said that we are now our own "big brother," but no one will have an issue if they follow the parking rules. Ironically, I just came across news that Curb Your Enthusiasm star Jeff Garlin was arrested over a parking spat as I was looking for an imagine from a parking-themed episode of that show. Jeff, the Canadians have you covered.
Too busy to pick up the takeout? Postmates will deliver It was 2006, and Bastian Lehmann was moving from Munich to London. In the arduous process of getting all his stuff from one city to the other, his snowboard was left behind. It would have cost a fortune to forward it with traditional shipping services like UPS or FedEx, but Lehmann checked Yelp and found a cheaper courier service that would handle the job. Turns out he got the board transported an even cheaper way, when a friend brought it to him, but the seed for Postmates -- a same-day courier service that allows people to get whatever they need to wherever they need it -- was planted. “It’s like ride sharing for items,” Lehmann says. “We thought, 'We can create a network similar to UPS that’s part of your city that merchants can leverage.' ” The problem San Francisco-based Postmates aims to resolve isn’t so much delivering between cities (like Lehmann needed when his snowboard was left behind) as delivering within them. In coming weeks, more merchants will be able to sign up.
Is social influence the new celebrity? MELBOURNE -- Devin Graham, also known as "Devinsupertramp," has a knack for producing videos that go viral, such as, "World's Largest Rope Swing", "Human Slingshot Slip and Slide", or the occasional video game promo. The 29-year-old Utah resident, who has over one million followers on his YouTube channel, has worked with high-profile clients, such as entertainment giant Warner Bros. and video games publisher Unisoft, to create marketing and promotional content. Graham is representative of a new type of celebrity -- "the social influencer" -- defined by Melbourne social media agency Repless as "anybody producing or curating content in a meaningful way that attracts and maintains a large number of followers, subscribers or fans." Product placement and celebrity endorsements are nothing new, but Repless, established in 2012, claims they are one of the first companies to pioneer the connection between brands and social media influencers.