First Mover Disadvantage

I don't tend to follow individual company fortunes except as they are illustrative of more macro level trends, which is the reason for several posts on TiVo and Netflix. It would be difficult to argue that these two ventures have not been fundamental in pushing forward visual digital media (film and television) in the same manner that mp3 has for music.

And here comes an article from Daniel Gross of New York Magazine discussing the evershortening window of business model innovation and first mover advantage. His main point, that windows protecting new technology or product category entrants is shortening, misses the fact that adoption of new technology as a whole has collapsed and accelerated and that the entire lifecycle model has as well. So, it's not incredibly surprising that larger pocketed companies have less time to wait before striking out at first movers.

What he did miss is an opportunity to muse on what this new technology portends for the future of our media consumption. That the act of delivery (Netflix) and digital content (TiVo) entering into at least an engagement is a signal of the direction consumers are moving. That how, when and where we consume media will become more flexible and that the existing gatekeepers are looking to maintain control (cable companies introducing their own PVRs, Blockbuster and Walmart with their own delivery service) as they gingerly seek to adapt without destroying their own cash flows.

By way of GreenCine Daily.