Billion-dollar babies in the tech sector

CNET News.com has a good article focusing on where the technology industry is

Some important comments, which should be remembered, are focused on where technology companies are growing towards and where their focus remains. " The industrial logic behind many technology deals is now very similar to heavy industry. These kinds of deals are focused on achieving better economies of scale, better use of research and development and better use of general and administrative costs...They are profit plays more than growth plays. This is new in technology." It's almost as if the late 90's was a time of new technology and the current time is more for how people will use the new technology. The need to update to the newest technology isn't as prevalent as what it was in the late 90's when everyone was afraid of Y2K bugs and were more interested in protecting their past investments in technology.

One of the areas where growth still remains is in providing internet content. "The interesting thing about Internet content is that it's not that hard to start an Internet company and build a brand. Although a lot has been done already, there are very low barriers to entry if you have a good idea...Internet distribution is increasingly being proven to be effective." The article also goes on to mention the differences in magazines available. At one time there were only a hand full of magazines and now there are racks and racks full of magazines. The important thing that each magazine brings to the table is a focus on a specific group of people who want to enjoy what is available from each publisher.

When I worked in the Futures Trading industry a number of brokerage houses realized that by providing updated information was a way to draw people to their web site and then hopefully turn those clicks into customers. What firms eventually did was turn their best research into an area that only members could use and would need to log on to the site to access. Thus turning clicks into dollars. Several online magazines follow the same idea of providing a brief description of the article and making the whole article available only for subscribers.

All of this points to several ideas available for anyone wanting to go into business for himself or herself. Provide new, original content that people will enjoy and that is easy for them to use.