At SAS 2007, Microsoft’s Bill Gates opened the event with a keynote discussing his overarching vision of the future of technology and how it will affect media and advertising opportunities. He offered his insights on the industry as we move “beyond the digital decade.”
Software is going to revolutionize not only advertising, but the way people consume media, communicate, and create, Mr. Gates said. “The advances we’ve made over the last 20 years are the foundation we’re using to take dramatic leaps forward.”
Mr. Gates discussed trends in consumer behavior that are driving change in the advertising industry. Industry mega-trends such as broadband availability, mobile devices, and multi-core processing continue to make richer and more immersive experiences possible in a wide variety of settings. Mr. Gates sees consumers’ information and entertainment experiences becoming more and more connected and available at all times.
Technology will help people determine the information they want in their lives. Personalization and targeting will continue to become more refined and readily available. For example, a father may want to stay up to date on his daughter’s sports team. In the future, his technology preferences will alert him when another parent uploads a video of the team’s recent game to the Internet, and he can view the video on his television as soon as it is available.
Innovations in Internet consumption will alter the use of other media. In fact, Mr. Gates asserted that user-generated content will affect the competitiveness of broadcast television. Similarly, the explosion of Xbox Live and other technologies will create communities and drive change among consumers.
The industry is already abuzz with all the recent shifts in consumer behavior, but Mr. Gates said he expects even more changes in consumers’ media experiences and advertising opportunities. In the future, advertisers, agencies, and their target customers will keep in touch and interacting in a timely and contextual way. The key to success is taking action now to build and shape these experiences for the future.
