these are some examples of trend info from various sources:
 
The top 10 tech trends
FAST FORWARD TO 2010: PART V: From 'smart' shoes and 'invisible' cellphones to digital tattoos and a 3D Web, the future is all about customization
 
Mark Evans and Kevin Restivo
Financial Post

Saturday, December 31, 2005


With the pace of innovation so rapid, predicting what technology will bring us in the way of new products even in the next few years is anyone's guess.

After all, only a decade ago, the Internet had just started to move into the mainstream, but how many would have predicted it would become such a ubiquitous communications, entertainment and business tool. Satellite radio was virtual unheard of a few years ago. Now you can buy a receiver for $100 and have more than a 100 commercial-free channels beamed into your car and home via satellites. And what about the iPod? If someone had told you in 1995 that you would be able to store thousands of songs on a device about the size of a pack of cards, you would probably have laughed at the suggestion.

"When you are talking five to 10 years, something could come along to make the kind of splash that is hard to anticipate," said Ragde Prabhakar, a professor with the University of Waterloo's computer science school. "If you look at the history of predictions of technology, they tend to say more about the times and a linear exaggeration of the way things are than really noticing catalysts that come along and change the way people interact with technology."

That said, the Financial Post asked a number of experts to gaze into crystal balls to see what high-tech products and trends could be on the horizon.

1. PERSONALIZATION

The days of one-size-fits-all are quickly coming to an end for many products. The most exciting opportunities lie in the use of small computer chips to personalize a product to the individual. Adidas introduced this spring the Adidas 1, which it billed as the world's first computerized "smart shoe." The US$250 footwear uses a sensor, microprocessor and motorized cable system to automatically adjust the shoe's cushioning. Based on a person's running style, the cushioning can be softened or stiffened.

Computer chips are also being used to adjust the flexibility of skis according to snow conditions and how you ski.

They will also be embedded in clothes so a person's body temperature can be wirelessly transmitted to a furnace, for example. The surrounding temperature would then be adjusted based on the person's clothing and body heat.

"Increasingly, the future will be customized options," said Jim Bottomley, a futurist and owner of the Peterborough, Ont.-based Breken Group. "If you take a common product and put in computer chips, you can adapt the product and customize it for the user. If you take this strategy for businesses, one of my key points is how customization for the individual is a key quest going forward, and technology will allow you do it."

2. ONLINE MICRO-PAYMENTS

E-commerce has taken off in recent years, but an area still to be tackled is micro-payments. These involve products or services that cost less than $5, such as songs and newspaper articles. According to a recent survey by Ipsos-Insight and Peppercoin, about 45 million Americans are happy to make online purchases of less than $5.

Dexit Inc., a Toronto-based company, is trying to convince Canadians to use its prepaid cards instead of cash. For $1.50, consumers can fill up a Dexit card with up to $100 to pay for items at participating merchants.

Credit card companies are excited about micro-payments, too. MasterCard, for example, has a wireless-enabled credit card designed to let consumers use a "touch-and-pay" system in places such as fast-food restaurants without having to sign a receipt or punch in your personal identification number.

3. BIOMETRIC PAYMENTS

Forget about using cash, a credit card or a debit card when you can pay using your finger. San Francisco-based Pay By Touch Solutions is hoping to develop technology that will permit finger scanning at the point of sale to purchase a product. The company, which raised US$130-million this year, is working on a service in which you could swipe your finger at a retailer or restaurant to provide information about your size and tastes.

4. ELECTRONIC PAPER

For years, the promise of electronic paper has been dangled before us. It is based on the idea that the contents of a piece of "paper" (actually organic electronics, plastic and tiny balls) can be changed. Imagine reading a newspaper without having to turn a page. Instead, a thin, flexible, lightweight device would carry all the information. This summer at the Tokyo International Forum, Fujitsu demonstrated a bendable electronic paper featuring vivid colour images.

5. CONSUMER ROBOTS

Remember those sci-fi shows from the 1960s when a robot cleaned your house? Well, the future is here they actually can clean your house. This summer, iRobot Corp. started selling a robot called Scooba that washes floors with the push of a button. The Scooba uses intelligent software and sensors to remember the layout of a floor plan so it can quickly perform its job. Could it be a matter of time before there is a robot that cooks the dinner and cleans the dishes?

6. THE 'INVISIBLE' CELLPHONE

Tired of hunting for your cellphone? Pretty soon you may not have to look for it. In fact, the cellphone will soon be as small as the earpieces used by business people to hook up with today's devices, says Dan Burrus, a futurist and owner of the Dan Burrus Research Group in Hartland, Wis.

Phones will be a fraction of the size of today's phones and will be lodged into people's ears permanently if they so choose, says Mr. Burrus. He calls the phones of the future "invisible" because users won't ever hold them in their hands. Instead, users will program and run the phones with voice commands, a change from today where people punch in commands with their fingers.

The phones will also act as hearing aids and will have embedded, minute Global Positioning Systems to guide lost travellers.

7. THREE-DIMENSIONAL WORLD WIDE WEB

The Web is going to go 3D. The Internet will become viewable from every side, like a video game playable on Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 system. Web surfers will have a deeper, more complete view of retailers' wares rather than the simple graphics and text-filled pages that fill the Internet now. "The browser will soon allow for three-dimensional views of the Web," says Mr. Burrus. "It will change the Web completely."

Similarly, TV will have 3D qualities, which will eventually let broadcasters produce shows that can be projected into the middle of the room. Unlike cheesy 3D experiences of the past, viewers won't need to wear flimsy glasses to watch a show or movie. And companies such as Z Corp., a Burlington, Mass.-based maker of 3D printers, are already working on technology that builds up layers of a material to create a solid model from a digital image.

8. DIGITAL EYEGLASSES

Internet-enabled eyeglasses will be used by people who want to stay connected to the Internet and have their actions monitored. They are worn like reading glasses but are larger and more cumbersome.

"For a person, the glasses are like a walk recorder instead of a flight recorder," says Steve Mann, a University of Toronto professor known for his research in the "wearable computing" field. "People are already using all kinds of these types of devices."

The glasses are useful for elderly people and others that have trouble remembering things, said Mr. Mann. Hewlett-Packard Co., Nokia Oyj and other large global corporations are developing so-called "sousveillance" devices, which record a person's activities from their perspective.

The glasses may one day be able to download people's thoughts, feelings and memories from a computer.

9. DIGITAL TATTOOS

Tired of losing cards or trying to remember the passwords to your many online accounts? Pretty soon, people will be able to have all their personal information embedded in a tattoo that resides under the skin.

"It's going to look like a screen but it won't be removable," said Mr. Burrus. "It's not as extreme as it seems. It will be like getting a tattoo."

Separately, a removable tattoo will be created that can be attached to a person's skin, on which it will be able to play movies.

10. EMOTIONALLY RESPONSIVE TOYS

Responding to the sound of an owner's voice, the toys will be able to react with a variety of emotions. Sony Corp.'s Aibo dog robot, which sells for about $3,000, can already simulate anger, fear, surprise, dislike and other emotions. iRobot is reportedly developing a product called My Real Baby -- a robotic but emotionally responsive baby doll.

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How to spot the top 10 new consumers
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Consumer group targeting has long been a vital aspect of the media world. However, as Clare Goff reveals, recent research shows consumer groups are fragmented and can no longer be neatly pigeonholed into established types.

Are you a Yuppy or a Yeppy, a Dinky or a Jones? Are you Metrosexual, Ubersexual or Contrasexual? A New Geek or a Post-Raver? It seems like every week, a new consumer group is born. Trendwatchers, ad agencies and social research centres uncover a new attitude or a shift in a particular demographic and coin a phrase to sum it up. For media and marketing, they are a vital means of keeping up to date with rapidly changing consumer interests and definitions.

But as some of these groupings also show, consumers are becoming more complicated and less easily segmented into neat groupings. Emma Laney, head of UK Pulse at McCann-Erickson, explains: "Our inter-generational study showed there is no longer any single inherited sense of self, whether that be a class, a political persuasion, a social group or a race.

We have to face up to a consumer who doesn't like to be defined by a demographic, nor by an ‘attitude' but by their own multi-faceted, complicated selves."

These "selves" are different depending on circumstance and can change categories. Some defy the basic tenets of marketing. So read the list below.

You might even find your own label.

1. Saffys (or new fogies/neoconservative teens)

Bubbling under the surface and still yet to make a real impact on marketing strategy is the emergence of a conservative generation of teenagers. Tagged Saffys, after Jennifer Saunders' prudish daughter in the series Absolutely Fabulous, they are the children of ravers or ladettes who are rebelling against their parents' liberal attitudes. Research shows a significant proportion of teens are shunning binge-drinking and drugs to focus on careers, and learning to take life seriously.

"It is hard if you are young nowadays," says Lara Colenso, senior consultant at The Henley Centre. "There are constant exams and the expectation that you won't get on the housing ladder." Often both parents will have worked, meaning many Saffys have strong bonds with their grandparents and are adopting their values.

They have traditional attitudes towards marriage and many are following their US counterparts, shunning sex before marriage and taking up religion. "It's the death of the traditional teen," says William Higham, founder of Next Big Thing, which coined the phrase Saffys. "It's always been assumed to be about hedonism, but we are seeing a return to the attitude of the pre-1960s."

Media favourites: Traditional, heavyweight newspapers like The Times and The Economist

2. Generation Jones (Late Boomers)

The term Generation Jones was coined in 1997 by American social scientist Jonathan Pontell to describe those born between the years 1954 and 1965. Their world view sits between that of the older baby boomers – now classified as the grey market – and the younger Generation X-ers. Largely defined by events of the 1970s, they are described as "realists with a social conscience" straddling the idealism of baby boomers and the selfishness of later generations.

In 2004, the concept was identified across the UK and, according to research by Carat, now represents about 20% of the UK adult population. With more interest in financial security than baby boomers, this group also has the highest personal and household income of any generational segment in the UK. The demographic has been broken down into three specific segments – Conservative Jones, Mainstream Jones and Radical Jones.

Increasing levels of tolerance in Britain can be put down to the presence of Generation Jones, according to The Future Laboratory. While Joneses do not support any particular political party, they are committed multiculturalists, increasingly concerned about the environment.

Media favourites: In-car radio, sports sponsorship, roadside advertising and the internet

3. Heidis

These Highly Educated Independent Degree-carrying Individuals are set to become one of the most influential sectors in modern British society, according to a study by The Future Laboratory and Allegra Strategies. The study uncovered 10 million so-called Heidis in the UK – affluent 30-something women who make most of the purchasing decisions in their household and spend everything they earn. They take their careers seriously but also party hard, with 60% of them saying they regularly go clubbing on a week night. "These women are often going out so much, they will still be in the same clothes the next morning," said Tom Greatrex of The Future Laboratory.

"They will wait for Top Shop to open and buy a new outfit to wear to work." Many of them hold down binge careers, working intensely for a period, then taking time off to party or go on holiday. Heidis make up 60% of the people who choose to take a year off work. They also make up almost 80% of customers in homeware stores and they spend about £3,000 a year on home improvements.

A Heidi will often be single but, far from being a Bridget Jones, she is likely to be having too much fun to want to settle down.

Media favourites: Various, including fashion

4. Alpha Male

From the '70s to the '90s, the Alpha Male was easily identifiable. During the '70s, he would be sipping Campari and soda and driving a chrome-encrusted Capri. In the '80s, he wore Armani, drove a Porsche, clutched a Filofax and a huge mobile phone. But ostentatious symbols of wealth have diminished and the Alpha Male is becoming an increasingly hard species to identify. A recent study by McCann World- Group found Alpha Male "a changed beast" and "poorly understood by marketers who rigidly adhere to outdated stereotypes". The clichés of the Alpha Male, such as arrogance, are no longer rewarded by society and showy labels and brands have lost resonance. New Alpha Male makes purchases that allow him to state his non-conformism, eg driving a Harley Davidson or playing the electric guitar.

An Emap Advertising report divides Alpha Male into two groupings: Black Collar Workers, seen in Hoxton holding down a web designing job and Corporate Creatives, who have more traditional careers, but don't conform to stereotype. Richard Fero, insight manager at Emap Advertising, says: "If you want to capture this group, you have to think more creatively about how to talk to them."

Media favourites: Various, but wants something inventive and eye-catching

5. The New Geek

"The anorak has finally been ditched and a new, more chic Geek has emerged from the bedroom," says Nick Betts, president of the Sci-Fi Channel, whose Geekforce Report has revolutionised the perception of the Geek. The bad odour-smelling loner has undergone a complete transformation to become a "driving force in society," the report says. It reveals that there are 6.9 million Geeks in the UK, predominantly in the upmarket ABC1 group and spending £8.2bn between them, pursuing their hobbies. The typifying factor of Geeks is their single-minded focus on their chosen passion – whether it be fashion or train-spotting – and this has, in a time of advertising overload, accelerated them to the role of guides through consumer society. Their single-minded passion now makes them attractive – rather than repellent – to the opposite sex, a source of information to their friends and a sought-after audience for marketers. The internet is the main research tool for the meticulous research of Geeks, with 81% saying that it is their first port of call.

Media favourites: The internet, specifically blogs, chat rooms and SMS

6. Nifty Fifties (incorporating Goagrannies, the Palin Pack and Brandmothers)

Retirement was once about pipe-and-slippers and holidays in Skegness. The most adventurous of the older generation saved up for a cruise. But as the original "backpackers" reach their 60s, they are eschewing this sort of holiday to relive experiences of their youth.

The Palin Pack view Michael Palin as a hero and are taking adventurous journeys. "They may have backpacked around Cambodia in their youth and they are not suddenly going to start going on cruises," says Next Big Thing's Higham, who coined the phrase. An OMD survey showed that more than 80% of the UK's wealth is in the over-50s age bracket.

More than half of them are planning a holiday at any one time, says Millennium Direct.

"They are looking to regress to the freedom of their teen years," says The Henley Centre's Colenso, "and they have loads more money to do it." A McCann Erickson report uncovered a high number of brandmothers: brand-literate, outgoing women over 50 who refuse to grow old the way their parents did.

Media favourites: Events such as theatre, art exhibitions, newspapers, seeding campaigns

7. Post-ravers

They were Generation X-ers who took ecstasy and lived for weekend raves. Now they are in their 30s, settling down and incorporating that which they loved about the rave scene into their own lives and the upbringing of their children. Many of them are still hedonistic and chasing the highs of their younger years, though on a more occasional basis: they may go clubbing, take drugs, do extreme sports and take exotic holidays, according to research by Next Big Thing, which coined the term post-raver.

They see themselves as being as cool and youthful as their children, and indulge in "peer parenting". "They buy Motorhead bibs for their kids and drag them to see Scooby Doo at the cinema," says Higham. But they also have a serious side and are driving some key 21st Century trends, such as a renewed interest in spirituality, ecology and community and striking a work/life balance.

Media favourites: Cinema, "right on" newspapers, such as The Guardian and Big Issue

8. Metrosexuals and retrosexuals

Modern urban man is struggling under the weight of descriptors applied to him. New Man metamorphosized into Metrosexual Man circa 1995, allowing a evolved, enlightened form of masculinity to emerge. Epitomised by David Beckham sporting a sarong, the metrosexual message is that masculinity and manicures are not diametrical opposites. Research by Dragon Brands showed more men prefer to treat themselves by taking a bath than going to the pub. It's been a boom time for the grooming industry, as men take up skincare products and waxing.

Talksport's ad profits were boosted last year by advertising from Nivea, and lads' channel Bravo introduced metrosexual programming (see Media Week, page 15, 16 August) But the backlash is beginning. McCann-Erickson believes 2005 could be the year that men embrace a 21st century version of maleness.

The rise of Retrosexual Man is epitomised by Levi's new viral online campaign, Uncomplicate, and new retrosexual literature from Karl Mark and Dan Indanteeum, entitled The Complete Arsehole's Guide To Handling Chicks.

Media favourites: Viral communication, niche literature

9. Kilroys

Coined by Next Big Thing research group, Kilroys take their name from both ex-UKIP president Robert Kilroy- Silk and the mid-20th Century graffiti figure (as in "Kilroy was here"). These people proudly believe that they are the true representatives of England and are becoming increasingly vocal as they find many of their personal freedoms becoming eroded. Kilroy activism began during the fuel revolt in September 2000, when a previously silent majority of middle Englanders took to the streets in protest. Since then, activism – particularly by older members of society – has continued, from the revolts against speed cameras, to the fathers4justice invasion of Buckingham Palace. "We assume activists are young lefties," says Higham, "but these are 30 to 40- year-old neo-conservatives." Choice and personal freedom are the main hobby horses of this group and they have been found in various states of revolt as shareholders, in pensioner power groups and during the Countryside Alliance march on London.

Media favourites: TV, especially BBC1 & 2 and UK Gold. Also, web sites for protest groups such as like fathers4justice

10. I-generation

Generation Y has been replaced by Generation-I, as today's young adults are increasingly tech-savvy and digitally driven. Yahoo! researched the behaviour of more than 4,000 Brits and Europeans to uncover the interests of the first generation to grow up with digital technology.

Making up 11.5 million young adults in the UK and a quarter of all over 15s, the I-generation is a key group for marketers, with a £3bn spend targeting them in the UK alone. The research revealed six key insights into this group: members are digitally-driven, homogenous, self-absorbed, time-pressured and brandist, while a sub-section are so-called "social sparks", at the forefront of technological advancements. Overall technology rules their lives. For those living at home, mobiles and e-mail are key for connecting with friends, while for newly-independents, they are the "umbilical cords" of their social life. Almost half of those researched said they watch less TV following the advent of the internet. Half of the respondents said they spent up to two hours a day surfing the net.

Media favourites: Internet and mobile phones



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