It’s been a tumultuous week – Hurricane Sandy battered the East Coast, destroying and damaging cities and technical infrastructure along the eastern seaboard. On a much less destructive scale, Apple experienced its own internal storm, as iOS Senior Vice President Scott Forstall abruptly left the company following the iOS Maps debacle. Over on GigaOM Pro, our analysts are looking towards the future of batteries and a sustainable power grid, and what’s next for screen-driven consumer products.
Note: GigaOM Pro is a subscription-based research service offering in-depth, timely analysis of developing trends and technologies. Visit pro.gigaom.com to learn more about it.
Cleantech: Opportunities in next-generation battery technologies
Brittany Gibson and Clint Wheelock
As we’ve seen from the week’s events, developing a robust and sustainable power grid is a vital disaster prepareness plan. While battery technology has played a vital role in the growth and development of consumer and industrial products, innovations in battery technology depend on comparatively sluggish advances in materials science. Pro analysts Brittany Gibson and Clint Wheelock take a look at the battery innovation timeline with a specific focus on three market cornerstones: tablets, electrified vehicle, and grid storage (solar PV and community energy storage). Can the engineers and scientists working behind the scenes keep up with market demands and consumer needs?
Cloud: Why Sandy Was Good for the Cloud
David Linthicum
In this brief post, analyst David Linthicum provides a quick take on how Hurricane Sandy affected data centers and the Internet infrastructure along the East Coast over the past week. Linthicum offers his initial thoughts on what we – and the cloud industry at large – can learn from Sandy and the value of a solid disaster preparedness plan.
Connected Consumer: What the shift to the cloud means for the future EPG
Mari Silbey
Pro analyst Mari Silbey looks at the evolution of television’s EPG (electronic program guide): from a simple on-screen scheduling grid provided by cable companies, the EPG has already changed in response to DVRs, online video, mobile video, and the wealth of content made available through the cloud. As content exploration and discovery become the primary focus of today’s EPGs, device manufacturers and TV service providers are looking towards far richer and more interactive UIs and granular personalization as the next step towards regaining a foothold in this competitive marketplace.
Social: The state of cross-platform measurement across TV, online, and social
Linda Loizides
As online and mobile video networks and technologies continue to rise in popularity, advertisers are using a variety of cross-platform media measurement tools to identify and track their audiences. But the industry currently lacks any standardized metrics for this rapidly-evolving market – one that is heavily influenced by social networks and audience fragmentation. Loizides assesses the current market situation and existing efforts, and presents a list of recommendations to the industry.
Hurricane Sandy photo courtesy of Flickr user NASA Goddard Photo and Video
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