• Activ Right Brain
  • About Dean
  • Designing The Future
  • Speaker
  • Keynotes
  • Blog
  • Art
  • Contact

activrightbrain

  • Activ Right Brain
  • About Dean
  • Designing The Future
  • Speaker
  • Keynotes
  • Blog
  • Art
  • Contact

Self Aware, Self Controlled

We yearn for independence, yet struggle to manage increasing levels of communication and distraction. So where do we draw the line and what lies in store for our connected future?

At LeWeb in Paris last December, the term ‘Enchanted Objects’ was used to describe Wearable Technology. It’s a nice phrase and covers the interaction and solution as well as the hardware.

Others stated that wearables were all about data, its delivery and the results. However, that's like saying everyone bases their smartphone, tablet or laptop buying decision on the operating system alone. The smartwatch market has to deliver on all counts: to look and feel special AND tell the time for at least 24 hours.

Not a great start for the Apple Watch with a maximum of 18 hours then? Not perfect by any means but Apple’s new device (and the consumer/media scrum surrounding it) is likely to light the blue touch paper under the wearable tech industry.

To make the point, Wearables and Jeremy Clarkson captured a lot of the headlines last week, with Apple’s Spring keynote revealing the features, price and launch date of the Apple Watch plus the Wearable Technology Show bringing the great and the good of the industry together at ExCeL in London, where I was fortunate enough to speak on the opening panel and host the second day of the Augmented and Virtual Reality track.

So what can we expect from our Enchanted Objects in the not-too-distant future? CES and MWC offered a raft of products and platforms, so I’ve highlighted four key areas where devices, sensors and data need to play nice to deliver a seamless (and often invisible) experience. We don’t want to do more things, we need things to do more.

The Car

The temptation is to use the screens we carry as extensions of the dashboard. Don’t. Automotive designers spend years training and honing their skills. They design and build an ergonomically sound environment, with information displayed at the right size in the right place. As soon as you add a randomly-placed small phone screen or attempt to glance at your wrist, all the good work is undone.

Leave the screen, continue the journey – that’s the message to drive home (no pun intended). Our connected devices should talk to each other without our prompting, be aware of their surroundings and our habits. Mid-track streamed music and telephone conversations are already transferrable when we sit in some manufacturers’ vehicles. Social channel conversation and navigation on foot then on wheels are the next step. Take a half-written Twitter message, finish and send it via voice instructions and have the responses fed back through audio rather than visual channels.

The autonomous cars of the ‘future’ are with us already, they’re just not available to buy yet. The issues over screen distraction will take a back seat (again, no pun, etc) so we’ll find more to keep us occupied, but that won’t be car-specific – it will be the same interaction and distractions we experience outside the vehicle! I’m not saying anything about Apple Car, yet…

The Mall

Location, location, location. The infrastructure still has some way to go but our devices need to talk to retailers before we even leave the house, then the location-specific content kicks in via GPS or iBeacon. Find our parking space, log our arrival time and reimburse our fees if we’ve spent the right amount in the right places.

When we’re in, direct us to offers we’ll find attractive from brands we follow, guide us to the right in-store concession, then allow us to pay for it or order it if there’s no stock available. Also offer alternative local stores to continue the experience.

This should be a brand-agnostic experience. We need to see everything relevant as no one wants to fill their phone or watch with apps for each brand or service.

The House

“Why is the fridge empty?” “because it forgot to reorder groceries”. How long before we’re blaming our devices for the things we used to take responsibility for? This is an important section to cover in the ‘Internet of Things (IoT)’ but manufacturers have made a lot of progress here, we just haven’t adopted it all yet. Our phones can tell our thermostats we’re nearly home ensuring optimal temperature upon our arrival, saving energy and avoiding discomfort. We can control all the lights with an app and the full entertainment system can deliver playlisted content from dusk till dawn.

I have a wifi-enabled kettle controlled by an app. Do I need it? No. Do I want it? Yes, but I’m not normal. The challenge ahead is the same faced by auto manufacturers – what to leave out. We can automate almost anything but some things just don’t need to be connected.

The Event

Let’s talk music. You buy an album, or maybe you don’t. You stream the album without paying for it, you follow your favourite band but where’s the depth? Well, there’s the concert but this is hardly a regular occurrence so the future for connecting artists with their audiences lies in the ability of devices to extend the main event throughout our daily routines.

Audio watermarking offers an incredible opportunity to not only deliver stunning live light shows at venues and through second screen interaction, but also monitor listening habits and reward fans based on music played and ‘collected’.

Connected devices should steer us to the music we want, help us buy, build or consume, then lead us to performances with specific ‘money-can’t-buy’ rewards to keep us coming back for more.

Voice activation is one input method that spans all the above. In a perfect world, this form of interaction could offer the best solution for hands-free, platform and device agnostic progress. In reality, we have social boundaries to cross and habits to break before verbal outbursts on train platforms or in the office are acceptable. It’s less of an issue in the home or car, but we’re not happy to shout at our devices in public. I give it five years, but let’s avoid innovation for innovation’s sake.

tags: Connected devices, IoT, Internet of Things, connected home, Connected TV, Connected Car, Connected audience, automotive, Music, home, homekit, TEDxAthens, CES, CES 2015, #CES2015, #TEDxAth, TEDx, iBeacon, NFC, Mercedes, Mercedes F015, LeWeb, Enchanted Objects, Mobile World Congress, #MWC2015, #WTS2015, Wearable Technology Show, Apple Watch
categories: Apps, Automotive, cars, Futurology, Gadget, Innovation, Interiors, Mobile technology, Music, Wearable Technology, Connected World, Conference
Tuesday 03.17.15
Posted by Dean Johnson
 

Welcome to The Future

I think I can safely say it’s been an incredible 12 months. Don’t take my word for it, we had 4 Apps of The Week, Number 1 apps in over 60 countries (including Books, Music and Games categories) and the chance to co-host a Tools of Change Ignite session... with myself.

​

I started the year by telling the audience at Digital Book World (DBW) “2010 was an exciting year for publishing. If it wasn’t for you, then you weren’t doing it right.”

Publishing upped its game in 2011 with the UK closing the gap on the US in terms of digital publishing output (both origination and development) but we’re not there yet.

A mere 20 months on from the launch of the iPad and many within publishing find themselves in a similar position to Apple’s rival device manufacturers. Samsung, HP, Sony & co stood back whilst Apple took the bold move to reveal a mass-market colour multitouch tablet. Many within publishing took a similar approach.

The plan to sit back and wait for the concept to come crashing down around Steve Jobs’ ears was never a wise one. Apple were gifted an unchallenged trading year in 2010 and built on this unassailable lead with the release of iPad2 in 2011.

We’ve spend the last 12 months working with some incredible individuals from the publishing world who took the decision to wholeheartedly embrace the future, rather than sit back then clamber over a forlorn hope.

Some of our notable publishing partners-in-crime include Dan Franklin and Jon Salt from Random House, Charles Catton from Amber Books and Amanda Moon from Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Just like Dominique Raccah, Henry Volans and Charlie Melcher, they got on and made great stuff. It’s not too late to learn from this but the clock is ticking.

Publishers who joined the ‘Apps will never catch on’ movement will always have ebooks to fall back on but we have entered an era where books are no longer the exclusive property of publishers. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – a developer can produce the next interactive War and a publisher could create the next Angry Birds. This is a level playing field.

Roles and rules are changing fast as we work with clients across many areas, from music to TV to FIlm where they have access to the audio and visual content publishers crave but shy away from for rights issues. These content creators now want to work with publishers to weave an effective narrative into their projects. It’s time to get you all round a table and start talking.

Speaking of speaking, I have spent 2011 telling the world about Brandwidth’s incredible end-to-end app programme and demonstrating the results. From London to New York via Bologna and Frankfurt, the message has remained the same – just get out there and make it happen. We’re not the flavour of the month (or the year) in the UK because we haven’t got a current story to tell about failure. We’ve had years to learn about what not to do, we’re now in the business of showing the world how to get it right.

We don’t follow a template, we don’t build to the lowest common denominator and we don’t make everything spin. Our award-winning folio of apps is testament to design and build that adds sympathetic digital value to incredible content for the most appropriate audience.

We launched Headspin: Storybook in October 2010, a popup book app published under Brandwidth’s own label, in the Games category. We combined the visual charm of the pop-up with a simple yet addictive gaming element to demonstrate how the digital format needs to add value. Apple thought we’d hit the mark and they chose Headspin as App of the Week and one of their ‘Best iPad Apps of 2010’, promoting it on every iPad in every Apple Store worldwide.

Our second App of the Week was awarded to our second Guinness World Records: At Your Fingertips. We held the number one position for iPad Book app over Christmas and New Year in over 50 countries. A nice sequel to our original award-winning GWR app, launched on the same day as the iPad.

2011 saw our Top 100 Albums app launch for Amber Books and reach the top spot in the Music category, demonstrating that a book isn’t always a book... when it’s an app. We’ve continued to add life to this incredible project throughout 2011, with the latest update just in time for Christmas.

Our summer release was under the Brandwidth label and I’ve covered this in a previous post. F:sh is a digital interpretation of the children’s book and we played with accelerometer control, the integrated camera and audio interaction, combined with one continuous scene to break with the convention of ‘regular’ page turning.

September saw the launch of Journey to The Exoplanets for FSG/Scientific American. We were presented with an opportunity to combine the in-depth knowledge of author Ed Bell and Ron Miller’s incredible illustrations. The result was an app that took the basic elements of a reference book but brought the concept to life with the ability to create your own Exoplanet or place yourself on a planet’s surface, whilst retaining the original 10,000 word reading experience. App of the Week status, a number one hit in the US and UK, a Lovie Award and FWA App of The Day were proof that there’s life in the space category yet!

Our next launch, another App of the Week, was the spectacular Doctor Who Encyclopedia for Random House and BBC Books. We once again proved there’s enormous potential within digital reference material, with over 3,000 entries contained within the ultimate interactive resource for the last three Doctors. There are some fun updates to follow in 2012.

We rounded the year off with a bit of iPhone fun (unless you’re not a fan) with our Michael Bublé Christmas App for Warner Music. Don’t hold it against us, apps provide a valuable link to downloadable content and we’re in the marketing business.

If you’re not yet convinced apps are here to stay then ask yourself “do we need software?” If the answer is “no” then you’re blissfully unaware of the world around you. Apps are a form of packaging for software, the platforms provide the delivery mechanism, the hardware offers a place to live – or a virtual bookshelf.

So, what’s next? Automotive, finance and music apps are all on the books for 2012, with plenty of publishing thrown in. Too much focus in any one area results in virtual blinkers and these diverse sectors have a lot to learn from each other as they’ll all be competing for the same territory next year.

We’re very excited about the potential for The Numinous Place, our first foray into the world of enhanced fiction. We’re working with Mark Staufer to bring his novel to life in ways that appeal to keen readers, experienced app users and cinema-goers. No mean feat but an incredible challenge nonetheless.

You’ll also witness apps making a successful transition to the big screen, or at least the bigger screen. 2012 is the year TV becomes relevant again.

I’m not merely referring to watching TV as we’re already doing this across a number of mobile devices and PCs, I’m talking about the main screen at the centre of the house, the one we all used to sit around.

Connected TV will provide a seamless path to and from the big box. We’ll discover apps on mobile devices that offer additional enhancement when used with a TV. We’ll also discover apps via TV programmes providing either connected interactivity or download opportunities with the ability to sync to other mobile devices for use later. Both Apple and Google are on the case to make this work, however the relevant market for paid-for content will remain on Apple’s iOS devices for the foreseeable future.

There, I said it – discoverability. As TV ads receive less viewers (we all FFWD through them) and sponsored programming offers little more than a branding opportunity, there needs to be another path to consumers.

Get ready for app icons to replace the familiar ‘red button’ in the corner of a screen and brace yourselves for icons embedded within your EPG.

Now tell me apps won’t last and they can all be replaced with links to HTML5 websites. Appy Christmas.

3_Top100.jpg
4_Fsh.jpg
iPad_insitu_TNP_Vert_1.jpg
1_Headspin.jpg
2_GWR.jpg
6_Who.jpg
Exo2.jpg
3_Top100.jpg 4_Fsh.jpg iPad_insitu_TNP_Vert_1.jpg 1_Headspin.jpg 2_GWR.jpg 6_Who.jpg Exo2.jpg
tags: iPad, Doctor Who, The Numinous Place, Apple, Top 100 Albums, Doctor Who Encyclopedia, Michael Bublé, Headspin: Storybook, F:sh, Brandwidth, digital publishing, Connected TV, apps, Digital Book World, Journey to The Exoplanets, Guinness World Records
categories: Apps, Digital Publishing, Design
Friday 12.16.11
Posted by Dean Johnson
 

Designing the Future