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by J. BETTY RAY
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ALSO BY J. BETTY RAY
Web Filter: "And the Winners Are..."
The most over-hyped corporate sites.
Tarty Toons:
The outrageous Simpsons and South Park.
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Okay, everyone! Pop quiz!
What does the Internet do best?
Connect people?
Nope. Too 1993. Try again.
Generate pompous ideologies?
Sell weird stuff to
a global market?
Ohh, you're getting warmer. Hold onto your hats, kiddies, and get ready for... "convergence"!
Un-technically speaking, "convergence" refers to the inevitable merging of digital communications systems to meet the feral demand for wider bandwidth. Whether the convergence happens over traditional phone lines or cable modems or even satellites,
the format is still up for grabs. In the meantime, PC makers, phone companies, cable companies, the FCC, and plenty of Wall Street investors are among the high rollers gambling on this high-profit space race.
Soon we'll delight in full-motion, real-time remote broadcasts, or the instant gratification of downloading our favorite
records directly to our hard drive. We'll even be able to listen to the police scanners of major metropolitan centers without that blasted "Net congestion" that so often interrupts the clarity of present-day streaming technologies.
Yet, there are already more ways to procure full-motion, high-definition audio and video than the average, already-frazzled attention span can bear. What with the emergence of DVD-ROMs, HDTV (high definition television), and direct satellite TV, new formats and the products they spawn are as unrelenting as the hype that surrounds each. The market shows no sign of saturation, either; according to the Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association, retail shipments of all consumer electronics are at an all-time high.
But can the market sustain this dizzying array of new delivery systems, hardware, software, and infrastructure developments? One can't help but remember the Reagan-era building spree, which left scores of empty storefronts in its wake. For now, anyway, the government and private sector are in bed on a level that would make even Reagan blush — paving the way for a brighter, full-screen, high-definition (and undoubtedly high cost) future.
So grab your picks and axes, kids! As television, radio and Internet companies partner
with reckless abandon, the gold rush shows no signs of relenting!
J. Betty Ray edits Fucker Dot Com, which is the future of the Web. No hype.
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