Technology and the Long Tail Theory

     According to author Chris Anderson, all new technology pass through four stages in their lifetime. This includes technology within every field imaginable. From new prescription drugs and medical procedures to electric motors and digital downloadable music. In this theory, Anderson uses graphs that compare the price of the new technology to the percent of the market that has adopted the technology. For example, he uses the DVD as an example. The first graph he shows illustrates the very high prices of the DVD when it was first released. As an effect, the sales of DVDs were very low in the beginning. Eventually the DVD sales reached what Anderson calls "critical mass". This means that DVDs made up for 20% of the market. As the sales continued to grow, the DVD technology then reached the third stage of technology, which is when the new technology replaces the old technology. DVDs then began to sell significantly more than VCRs and soon controlled the entire market. The fourth and final stage of the long tail theory is when the technology commoditizes. This means that the technology becomes nearly free. As the DVD took over the market, other smaller companies find a way to make the technology even cheaper and therefore create competition in the market, which continuously drives the prices down. Today, consumers can rent DVDs for $1 per day.

     Another technology that this theory could be applied to is online shopping. Online shopping has become a new phenomenon. It is a much more convenient way of shopping, especially since the distance of the physical store is not a factor. This means that consumers can shop at stores that aren't even found in their country. Unfortunately this new trend has begun to negatively effect well established retailers. Stores like Sears, Belk, and Dillard's have begun to notice the changes that this technology has influenced in the market. These huge brands have begun to reduce the number of locations that they have and turn to online sales to remain in competition. According to the Long Tail Theory, Online shopping has entered the second stage of technology. It has reached critical mass and is growing everyday. It will be interesting to see how this technology changes the market. Personally I don't think online shopping will ever replace retail stores, but it leaves the door open for some interesting changes in the way people shop.

Privacy and Enhanced Personalization

      Privacy and enhanced personalization are two very similar but also very different subjects. With the popularization of the internet came a whole new way of using and sharing data. The internet allowed for a high concentration of personalized systems to exist in the same place. This change also created a distrust between people and the internet. Internet technology was so new that people where very untrustworthy of it. They would not put any personal information online. Today, there are more sources of user information. Assumptions can be drawn from mouse movements, mouse clicks, eye movement, facial expression, physiological data and location data. 
      Researchers conducted a survey that would measure privacy concerns and practices of internet users. The aim of the research was "to reconcile the goals and methods of user modeling and personalization with privacy considerations, and to strive for best possible personalization with boundaries set by privacy". They administered a survey that gave internet users the option to rank there experience with features of personalized websites. These questions allowed for people to truly reveal the different ways they interact with these sites and all of the concerns that they may or may not have thought of.
     According to the data, 90% of Internet users are concerned about their information being used by businesses for a purpose that they are not aware of. This is one of the main reasons most people are hesitant with revealing sensitive information about themselves. The results also revealed that people are more sensitive about certain details more than others. The research shows that more people are willing to disclose basic demographic information such as age, sex, education level, and marital status. The survey also revealed other factors involved in the willingness of internet users to disclose information about themselves. Trust in the websites that is asking for the information and also the reputation of the website are strong influencers. Some users even admitted to providing false or fictitious information about themselves. These results are proof that the use personal data may cause problems for those personalized systems that depends on user disclosing data about themselves. Personalized websites are becoming more and more popular all across the world. This has created the need for privacy laws to protect internet users and there information.