The 2000s: A Decade of Technology Addictions
Friday, 01. 8. 2010 – Category: T2 Communications
As another decade comes to a close, we are given time to reflect back on those previous years. For many, the 2000s were a decade full of highs and lows as the world continued to become increasingly more complex. Of particular importance was our increased dependence on technology to streamline our lives, both personally and professionally.
Items that started as a curiosity for some have evolved into addictions that we would be hard pressed to remove from our daily lives.
Cell Phones: In 2000, there were 281.4 million people in the United States, and just over 97,000,000 cell phone subscribers. Today, there are 276.6 million subscribers and to go along with 308 million people. That’s a change of 34% of the population with phones to nearly 89%. Now, of course, there are some that have multiple phones. Still, the pervasiveness of phones in our population is unquestioned.
The experience itself has also change over the past decade. Gone are bag phones and those mounted into your car, and now are replaced by ones smaller than a wallet. Calling packages haves gone from potentially hundreds of dollars per month to as little as $30 for unlimited calling. New features like texting and web surfing, plus enhanced features on phones like the Blackberry and iPhone, have turned the phone experience into so much more.
iPods: If there was one device that defined the decade, it was likely this device. First released in 2001, Apple’s iPod has spawned numerous versions (and imitators). It has changed size, color and capacity. It went from being a music player to viewing and taking videos, playing games and even making phone calls. Along with its partner sales platform, iTunes, the iPod forever changed the music industry and how we consume music by creating legitimacy to purchasing digital files that had been decimated by Napster.
More importantly, however, it changed how we experience music. It became more unique, more personal and ultimately more exciting. We were not longer afraid to explore new styles of music. It allowed independent music to become mainstream, and gave musicians who were perhaps ahead of their time their long-awaited due.
High-Speed Internet Connections: At the beginning of the decade, there was no shame in having a dial-up internet connection. Sure, it was slow, it disconnected easily and it came with those annoying screeches and beeps. But it was inexpensive access to a new world of content. But today, internet connections are about more than reading articles, sending e-mails or the occasional late-night music download. We now have blended media services that allow us to make phone calls and view TV shows all over a single connection. Cities around the world are connected, instantly and can share information in real-time. That sense of instantaneous connectivity is now an expectation all thanks to broadband connections and advanced networks.
They also changed how business was done. Internet-based commerce exploded, and it fundamentally changed how we view even the smallest business’ revenue model. Through a website and PayPal account, you can sell your product to anyone, anywhere at any time. EBay, Amazon, Craigslist and Etsy are all examples of businesses that used this to their advantage to create an entirely new marketplace.
It’s hard to believe how far we have come in ten years, technologically speaking. It excites the mind to think what the next ten years have in store.
David Fleming is the Director of Corporate Communications for T² Communications.
Tags: addictions, cell phone, David Fleming, internet, iPod, technology