Disruptive Technologies - Part 2: Music Editors and Steam
Engines are still related
I have illustrated on how music editors are related to
steam engines in Part 1. Why so loose a connection? Because I
want to stress the universal timeline from the early days of
steam engines to the modernity of music editors, during
which technology has evolved in waves of disruption.
Now somebody might break that already loose relationship.
John C. Dvorak, a very reputed columnist, fervently argues that
there is no Clay Christensen disruptive technology in its very
own coined definition: disruptive technologies are low
performers, “less expensive technologies that enter a heated
scene where the established technology is outpacing people’s
ability to adapt to it”.
Is my music editors - steam engines connection invalid
then, as there is no disruptive, let alone sustaining,
technology? I thought so. Yes, I thought so, as in his paper,
Dvorak rebukes so persuasively all purported disruptive
technologies: the microcomputers are not cheaper than the
minicomputers, and neither do internet sales supplant
bookstores. His points are convincing, covering even the titans
among the believed disruptive technologies of digital
photography and Linux.
But I think again, “independently”. And let me re-affirm with
you that despite the distant connection, music editors
and steam engines are indeed parts of the twin aspects of
technology, disruptive and sustaining.
Microcomputers were not cheaper, because the smaller-sized disks
were more expensive. However, microcomputers were not the
disruptive technology. It is the smaller-sized disk
drives. When the sustaining technology of cost-saving capacity
improvement came, the disruptive technology of
smaller-sized drives truly took over as they achieved the same
price points as larger-sized drives. The smaller-sized drives
are thus cheaper in utility terms. Isn’t it now a disruptor?
Internet sales, on the other hand, might not outperform
bookstores yet. But even that fits into the definition of a
disruptive technology: it is an initial low performer. That
internet sales would exceed bookstore revenues, especially when
there are more credit card holders than ever nowadays, seems a
good bet.
Thus, in similar arguments, it is fair to state that perhaps the
conclusion that Linux and digital photography not being
disruptive technologies is somewhat untimely. And who
knows if digital photography is not cheaper because it can’t be
cheaper or because it is so in demand its economic price can’t
be lower?
If you are not yet convinced, Napster and VoIP technologies will
make you. They fit into every aspect of Clay Christensen’s
definition of disruptive technologies.
Napster was inferior, it was sued for copyrights violation and
eventually shut down. But this first peer-to-peer music sharing
program was not only cheaper (in fact, users only needed to pay
for their internet access and the music editors if they
wish to morph the songs before sharing) than what conventional
music producers offer, but also quickly revolutionized the way
people listen to music (so quickly that it had to be shut down
as the then legal framework had yet to accommodate its form).
Napster is non-existent now. But its variants are growing
strong. And the sustaining industry of music editor
softwares has carved out a niche market for its own. This is
typical of a disruptive technology, one that not only
changes the way things are, but also brings on other flows of
goods and services.
In addition, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is another
epitome of disruptive technologies. Telephony is getting
cheaper, but VoIP is free (except for the internet access). And
VoIP boasts efficient pioneers the like of Skype and Vonage that
threaten to outdate traditional telephony practices. In fact,
telecommunication services have become so complex consumers
could not fully utilize their functions, thus turning to simpler
services and paying only for what is relevant to their needs.
That is how Sweden’s Comviq has seized 39% of the market from
the incumbent Telia by offering half as many handset features
and simpler pricing plans. But telecommunications will soon be
free; VoIP will soon disrupt even the like of Comviq. And the
sustainers that will keep VoIP evolving will be the class of
voice changer softwares and cheaper and faster internet
connection.
Ala, my music editors and steam engines are still
related.
Grand Theft Auto 9) Harry Potter and the Goblet of
