A new wave of technologies

Citation

(2002), "A new wave of technologies", Work Study, Vol. 51 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/ws.2002.07951faf.006

A new wave of technologies

A new wave of technologies

Next Wave Technologies and Markets is a new programme sponsored by the UK's Department of Trade and Industry. It aims to ensure that UK business is structured and equipped to exploit new information and communications technologies and products that enable intelligent functionality to be embedded into devices that will eventually become an integral part of daily life.

"Next Wave" (sometimes also known as "ambient", "pervasive" or "ubiquitous") will constitute the domestic, consumer and business computing and communications environment of the future. The first decade of the digital revolution was driven by the adoption of the PC as a universal tool in business. More recently it has become a window on the World Wide Web and an "infotainment" appliance in the home. While this has stimulated a wide variety of new applications of technology, uptake has been inhibited by difficulty of use, high entry-level costs and the need for complex human intervention.

The next wave of the revolution will be driven by the ability to embed intelligence in non-PC products, so that everyday appliances and electronic environments can communicate with each other and transform digital technology into an integral and intuitive part of daily life, accessible to those who do not regard themselves as "computer-literate". Thus "Next Wave" technologies enable the migration of intelligence and functionality from conventional information technology and electronic communications equipment into everyday appliances and environments.

From the users' perspective, "Next Wave" will be seen as a move to pervasive or ubiquitous environments – content or functionality will be available on almost any appliance at any location, and in context.

The "Next Wave" technologies will impact all aspects of life: in the home, on the move, at work or out shopping. There will be a greater availability of "things that think" on behalf of the user, with a lowering of the knowledge threshold required to make constructive use of functionality, communications and processing. The trend has already started – "Internet" fridges, microwave ovens and other household and personal items are already appearing but some believe they are currently of limited potential because the online services to support them are at an early stage of development. Provision of these services will follow soon enough, as will location-based services.

The ability of devices to interoperate within a service-oriented infrastructure will open up a wide range of new possibilities. Thus there are immense opportunities for the development of new products and innovative service solutions. National economies will increasingly be differentiated by their ability to develop the products and services of this "Next Wave" and the rate at which businesses and citizens are able to adopt them.

In the world of pervasive computing, we envisage people will navigate seamlessly through intelligent autonomous environments, enabled with access functionality and almost any information or service at any time. In the not too distant future, "Next Wave" technologies will pervade all aspects of work and life.

The NWTM programme also encompasses markets – the greater value being in the new service offerings that will be delivered through the next generation of intelligent appliances. IDC have estimated that by 2004, Internet appliance sales worldwide will reach 89 million units or $17.8 billion, compared with actual 1999 sales of 11 million units or $2.4 billion. Specifically, there will be more than 300 million personal digital assistants (PDAs) and television set-top boxes, and five billion additional everyday devices like vending machines, refrigerators and washing machines connected to the Internet.

Projections for the value of e-services delivered over these devices vary widely but are significant. In its 2001 analysis for DTI, Ovum estimated that the market for digital content alone would amount to between $100 billion and $140 billion by 2006.

The "Next Wave" programme will be run as a virtual interdisciplinary research collaboration (vIRC) with two complementary themes: it will offer support for a programme of collaborative research into "Next Wave" information and communication technologies and products; and it will also run a knowledge transfer club to facilitate user-orientated research, stimulate markets and inform interested users.

The collaborative research projects are designed to bring "Next Wave" technologies and devices nearer to the marketplace. These projects are expected to run no longer than two years, with results that are practical rather than theoretical. The projects will be expected to disseminate the "outline" results of their work through the NWvIRC. The aim is that the NWvIRC will be a Web-based virtual centre of excellence for the benefit of all.

The knowledge transfer/confidence-building phase is aimed at introducing new services into the marketplace, assisting initial take-up and assessing user reaction.

For more information see http://www.nextwave.org.uk