Innovation Copilots
The term “self-cannibalization” appears when a company launches a new product line, competing with one of its own. It is mostly a classic strategic move, implying that said company is phasing out some products to update their offer. In some cases, like in the fashion industry and their seasonal cycles, this is theorized as a core value for the customers. (I will let you discuss the merits of slow fashion at this point.)
Today, Bose announced they’d be closing all of their stores in North America, Europe, Japan and Australia. In their original 1993 thinking, the idea for such a chain of international retail stores seemed clear enough:
“Originally, our retail stores gave people a way to experience, test, and talk to us about multi-component, CD and DVD-based home entertainment systems. At the time, it was a radical idea, but we focused on what our customers needed, and where they needed it – and we’re doing the same thing now.”
Colette Burke, vice president of Global Sales, Bose Corp., Jan. 2020
Cover is a startup I’ve been following for quite a while. It’s based in Los Angeles and its job is straightforward:
We design, permit, manufacture, and install beautiful backyard homes in Los Angeles. Completely custom to your property, no subcontractors to deal with, and with a fixed price contract.
cover.build
A quick reminder that my thought-provoking question from 2017: When Star Wars will be shot on iPhone? is less and less provoking. This is now mainstream Apple marketing, where “shooting” means a movie and now just DSLR-quality pictures:
We Are still a few years before iPhones become cheap mainstream movie producing tools for Hollywood, but Moore’s law (and whatever apply for camera sensors) is getting there fast.
Understanding technology power laws is hard. Using them strategically is even harder.
Also, note that when you want to market movie-making in a fully digital age, we’re not seeing Hollywood, but Beijing. (It’s still early, but: happy new year of the Rat!)
As every year the CES (Consumer Electronic Show) is held at Las Vegas. Journalists flock the event and bombard social media with pictures, articles and videos of improbable products that will never see the light of the market.