Mary Meeker’s annual Internet Trends report is usually full of good stuff and this year is no exception. We already covered her comments about mobile monetization and the Facebook IPO, but one of the most interesting sections of her presentation were her thoughts about the future of the Internet. In her view, technology has already allowed us to re-imagine everything from book to news to note taking to crime awareness. Still, according to her, “we are still in spring training” and “the magnitude of upcoming change will be stunning.”
Specifically, she believes there are three areas in the consumer Internet space that are ready to be re-imagined: your ear and body, the car and the TV. New devices and services like Siri, Spotify and Soundcloud are already changing the way we interact with our devices and music, but there is still a lot that is left to be done in Meeker’s view. The car, where Americans spend an average of 54 minutes per day, also remains largely unchanged today (though it’s worth noting that connected cars are quickly coming to the mainstream market now).
Then, of course, there is the TV. With over 50 million Internet-enabled TVs in U.S. households today (and more if you count those connected to Internet-enabled set-top boxes), that’s definitely an area that’s ripe for disruption and the fact that so many people are clamoring for Apple to announce its own TV shows how many consumers want a different TV experience.
Driving this change, says Meeker, will be, among others, nearly ubiquitous high-speed wireless access in developed countries, ultra-competitive markets for mobile operating systems and devices, as well as available and experienced capital and “fearless and connected consumers.”
You can find Meeker’s complete presentation here.