Advent of Multi-Touch: Technology’s Impact on the Marketplace
Posted on Tue, Apr 22, 2008 @ 03:46 PM
For all the thousands of years it took man to capture electricity, channel it into a switch and create a light bulb, we’ve blitzed through dozens of generations of technological development in the last few decades.
I grew up in the 80s, when I dreamed about cars that could navigate roads for you (where do I sign up for GPS royalties?) and watch Star Trek voyagers communicate with aliens through touch-screen computers. It was far-fetched then. It’s reality now.
A year ago, the iPhone hit the market, and last week Microsoft launched its Surface, a multi-touch computer designed for consumer use in hotels, restaurants and retail stores.
With five cameras and 52 touch points capable of simultaneous responses, the Surface interacts with both human touch and real-world objects, like your phone or credit card. This is science fiction come to life—literally. As a matter of fact, one consultant on the project first concepted the technology in Steven Spielberg’s 2002 flick, Minority Report (remember the pre-cogs?).
How this impacts your business is a question of strategy. Spending the money to create your multi-touch presence may or may not fit who you are as a business. Do you sell in a crowded marketplace? Do customers like to look your products over from all angles and compare features with other products? Can you add value to your product by enhancing the experience of it through a digital presentation?
If so, then consider how you might use the tactic of multi-touch to further your overall strategy and increase your bottom line.