From a philosophical standpoint, Epic 2015 has been incredibly accurate in predicting the effect of the internet on 21st century society. In this regard, we are increasingly close to actually living in a world described by the video. However, the actual course of events outlined by Epic 2015 is overly dramatic and predicts a much more rapid evolution than what we have actually experienced.
While most of the video tells a story of how society will integrate with the internet, and how tech companies will evolve and alter information dissemination from now until 2015, the real theme I take from it is the following: the interconnectedness created by the internet, will make traditional information dissemination obsolete. What this means is that news agencies like the New York Times will be unnecessary because people will be so connected by the internet, that the information will spread from person to person so rapidly that we will not need to rely on the more traditional methods.
The way in which this has happened has not occurred in the same way that Epic 2015 predicted. Although the emergence and diversification of Google has happened in a similar fashion (the acquisition of other companies into their larger service network and expansion into seemingly unrelated fields like renewable energy), the monopolistic nature of their presence is not the case. Companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook (The video mentions Friendster; right church, wrong pew.), have emerged as competitors, and have not joined forces.
Microsoft, which has dominated the software market for decades, has struggled to keep up. The video’s prediction that most of Microsoft’s moves would be responsive to the moves made by others, and not innovative, was accurate. It has been pushed by more innovating companies such as Apple and Google and has seen its market share decline as a result.
Finally, the decreasing role of traditional news outlets is touched upon by Epic 2015. Credit must be given for this fact. Sites like Google news and the emergence of the “blogosphere” have greatly decreased the need for daily newspapers. The damage has been significant for daily print media and the publishing world as whole. Newspapers and news magazines have decreased significance.
My main critique with Epic 2015 is that is falls into the same trap as most predictions of the future: it identifies trends, but then overestimates the speed of their evolution. Like most predictions of the future, they predict a much more rapid and dramatic evolution than what actually takes place. This is common in just about every prediction of the future as there are too many variables in play. Where’s my jetpack and flying car?
Also, while the decreased role of traditional news outlets such as the New York Times is occurring, the sources that have closed up are mostly smaller, local newspapers. Larger ones have found ways to transition to online services. In fact, they still play a vital role in information sharing; they just do so in a different fashion.
Although a lot of information is gathered through social networking sites like Twitter, Google, and Facebook, most of the information being shared originates from traditional news companies like the NYT. The reporting done through social networks and Google is secondary. This could change in the future, but not by 2015 as the video predicts.
Sources:
Sloan, R. (n.d.). Epic 2015. Retrieved March 2011, from Making it Happen: http://epic.makingithappen.co.uk/
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