NAME: Nzurum, Iheanacho Okezie
REG. No: MIM/EDUC/4234/2009-2010
COURSE: LIBS 883
TITLE: The New Information Industry

SUMMARY
It is worthy of note that today’s information industry has shifted focus away single form and in the next ten to fifteen years information oriented businesses would reorganize themselves into three groups -(a) players involved in creation of information content, (b) Those involved in manufacture of information appliances and (c) Those engaged in information transport . These changes would be brought about by technological changes and economic forces which will lead to unprecedented sociological changes. Thus to succeed, companies must learn to operate on a global scale.
It is also projected that information-intensive approaches will replace physical assets and actions in diverse areas.
Today, the information industry is inefficient owing to economic/ecological resources’ waste, exclusion of a large portion of the target market, the use of cumbersome/expensive media of information distribution, inefficient information distribution as well as inadequate matching of information content with the needs of recipients. However, the future projection is one of information industry convergence, such that instant access to virtually any information from anywhere would be possible. Already, players in the industry have begun to merge with, as well as acquire others in a bid to remain relevant. The technological lines existing between the three traditional elements of the information industry (Computing, Office technologies and Telecommunications) are gradually fading away.
Currently, information exists in five basic forms which (in order of emergence) are; Text, Images, Voice, Audio/Video and Data. However, all five forms mentioned are all trending towards digitization. Their convergence has been driven by the diffusion of digital technology into information businesses. In essence, the underlying technologies and regulatory assumptions governing the separation of these industries by form have been rendered obsolete.
To date, information functions in the industry are determined by people who create, display, store, process or disseminate/transport information.
Key developments to date in computing include the following: a) Migration towards more powerful yet smaller and less expensive processors, b) Emergence of Data Storage of greater capacity which provide for easy access at lower cost (e.g. the advent of DVD-ROM as compared to older CD-ROM technology), c) The great size reduction of component technologies, d) Improvement in display technology and e) Ease of use and versatility of software (e.g. the use of Object-oriented programming languages).
It is also worthy of note that breakthroughs in communication technology have brought about significant changes like lower bandwidth costs and the marked improvement in computing speeds. Although the primary focus of convergence industries to date has been on the technologies that make it possible to combine different forms of information, sociological implications will drive the industry (like the explosion of the Internet). In all, convergence will bring about great economic development.
A look at the new information industry will show that all players harness essentially the same technologies which are rapidly becoming multimedia. It is expected that mergers and take-overs will continue as information industries try to position themselves for the future. The final result would be the reduction of the major industries from five (Voice, Text, Image, Audio/Video and Data) to three (Digital Content, Multimedia Devices and Convergent Networks). Of these three new industries, digital content is the most developed and it is expected that the entertainment and publishing industries will both dominate content delivery on a global scale.
The prediction is that when the information industry realigns itself based on functional capabilities, dominant players will be from entertainment, consumer electronic, and personal computer and communication industries. And for Information Transport (which will succeed today’s Telecommunication Industry), public telephone networks, the internet, wireless networks, cable TV, broadcast media and private networks will be consolidated whereas consumer electronics companies and PC manufacturers will converge into the Information Appliances Industry.
Critical success factors include a clear vision of the future, global orientation, flexibility/speed/productivity, investment in human capital, end-user focus, quality obsession, breakthrough innovation, mass customization, partnering and access to capital.

MY INPUT
It is an established fact that the information industry has been growing fairly constantly over the years. In recent times, information industries have stood to gain greater revenue from online delivery and this has been a major driving force for companies.
While it is evident that mergers and acquisitions will continue to shape the future of the online information industry, information producers must critically consider the propensities of their consumers (users) and how best to engage them in ways that work for them and their community. As yet, technology is yet to get many parts of the world and there is no promise that this can happen anytime soon. Information industries in these areas can be expected to take a much longer path towards embracing any form of revolution.