Re:Original Holmes cards

[P3D Larry Berlin <lberlin@xxxxxxxxx>]

>Date: Fri, 22 Nov 1996 17:48:02 -0800
>From: P3D Gregory J. Wageman  writes:
>
>I don't have the exact numbers at hand, but I believe I've read that while
>virtually every domiciled person in the U.S. has access to a television
>(often more than one), only about a tenth or so (somewhere around 25 million)
>have Internet access.  So while I agree with what you're saying, you're
>still talking about a small (if rapidly growing) minority compared to the
>television audience.  Even the homeless can watch T.V. at a shelter, but
>I don't know of any with Internet connections (yet).  What are the most
>popular television programs?  The educational ones?  Or "Seinfeld"?
>What computer programs sell best?  The encyclopedias?  Or "Doom" clones? 

**********************   The very fact that the TV industry sees their
numbers significantly changing as a result of Internet usage is the
tell-tale that seems significant. The internet may still be in it's infancy,
but what a big baby it is!!! I prefer to measure a medium by a level of
unique variety available rather than the lowest common denominator kind of
shows (which will always exist in all mediums). Especially since it seems
that an interest in 3D is of lesser interest to the masses. TV is crippled
by it's own insistence on instant success. The Internet will always offer
more unique *programming* precisely because it's not homogenized and
produced by the relatively small TV industry. (compared to the population
involved in using and writing/creating for the internet.) It will be 3D on
the Internet(and video taped products advertised there) that will drive the
newer 3D technologies and will eventually persuade TV to produce some new 3D
content.

>
>Personally I think 3Discover is doomed.  While they appear to be trying
>to fill the market niche that Viewmaster abandoned (i.e. stereo views of
>picturesque places), I don't believe there's a market there any more.
>People can see such places daily on T.V. (and especially cable), but with
>sound and motion.  The 3D aspect is at best a curiousity for most people,
>not enough of a "hook" to entice them away from the television.
>
>       -Greg W.
>

**************** It's not enough *hook* all by itself, but it's a given
strength, biologically programmed into our bodies. The goal isn't to drag
people away from their TV sets, but to bring 3D to their entertainment in
all mediums. 
True diversity is the gold that gets left behind when the
mass-market-strip-mining process gets finished. Now it's up to individuals
to recognize that their personal and oh-so-unique ideas are now extremely
valuable. As a people we've forgotten our own individual worth in the rush
of advancing technology. The internet and computers allow the individual to
once again gain access to others on a level that brings the one-of-a-kind
item back to availability. It's no longer necessary to fill a marketing
pipeline full of stuff before the market can access the product. 

This factor may be relatively new but it is there and slowly being
recognized. It doesn't do away with mass marketing, but it adds a potential
for a far greater level of diversity than this society has seen in a long
time. This seems very promising for those with an interest in 3D. It means
you can say *so what* to the idea that it's a special interest for a
relative minority. The nation and world is made up of minorities and now you
can have more direct access to these minorities from wherever you are.

I agree with you on the possible fate of 3Discover. I would also point out
that those who feel 3Discover should make a camera or some other system for
making your own image strips, are folks with a creative impulse. It's
possible that if 3Discover tapped into the potential of those with a
creative impulse they would have a product that appeals to a wider audience
because it would add much needed diversity to their line. Unfortunately
that's not their only challenge.

Larry Berlin

Email: lberlin@xxxxxxxxx
http://www.sonic.net/~lberlin/
http://3dzine.simplenet.com/


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End of PHOTO-3D Digest 1720
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