i.am.sagar

"Time is the quality of nature that keeps events from happening all at once. Lately, it..."

Fri, 13 Aug 2010 15:19:43 -0400

“Time is the quality of nature that keeps events from happening all at once. Lately, it doesn’t seem to be working.”

- Anonymous

The bar

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:40:16 -0400

The bar

The vintage look…

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:39:23 -0400

The vintage look…

Dhruv at four months

Sun, 01 Aug 2010 21:17:04 -0400

Dhruv at four months

Photo

Tue, 01 Jun 2010 21:21:20 -0400

Pondering…

Sat, 22 May 2010 19:00:35 -0400

Pondering…

Apple should buy Netflix one of these days!

Thu, 06 May 2010 00:07:27 -0400

I know this will piss off a lot of people - and so be it. In my opinion, Apple should buy Netflix and call it a day! Why? simply because it makes sense.

Apple is quickly becoming a solid content distributor and they have shown traditional music retailers how the game can be changed. They are the largest audio retailer today - and that’s no joke. Now let’s look at the Netflix angle. Apple sells a set-top box (AppleTV) that currently allows you to buy or rent movies and TV shows. Imagine if the AppleTV has Netflix integration. Sure, the business model will have to change a bit on the Apple side because I don’t think anyone is going to pay a monthly fee and also pay to buy content via iTunes. For most people that have a fast broadband connection and an AppleTV, getting a DVD in the mail makes no sense at all. Personally, as someone who owns an AppleTV, I much prefer to get all my content on this device if I can. With an acquisition of Netflix, they can have an online subscription model that, when truly integrated can give MobileMe a very valuable feature. At the end of the day, we all know what Apple plans to do with their Lala acquisition in terms of streaming music. Netxflix will give them the same for Movies and TV shows. They will continue to build out their iBooks store and with so many connected devices like the iPad, iPod Touch/iPhone, Apple TV’s and MacBooks, they’ll have a slew of devices to deliver content on. Who would be their biggest competitor? Amazon maybe?

Now the obvious question is , why not just offer the same functionality as Nexflix without buying them out? Clearly AppleTV is not the runaway success that a device like the iPad has been. In a large part, this is because the AppleTV doesn’t yet address a void and many people don’t know why they would get one. If Apple can find a way to get a lot more content to consumers on their AppleTV’s, such as instant watch movies or TV shows, a lot of people may be more inclined to dump their Cable TV subscriptions. The iPad already has a Netflix application so in effect the technology is already there. Netflix sells the Roku player which has the limitation of being a signel purpose device. Apple TV has the potential to be a much bigger success given that it can store content locally and can do Music, Movies, Podcasts, YouTube, Photos/Flickr and the link. Throw in some social networking hooks and let your friends buy you a movie via Facebook.

Apple could also take the current user data that Netflix has and integrate it with their Genius engine to recommend movies, books, and music based on what the user has previously watched.

Now the way to make this totally Apple would be to eventually phase out the Netflix site and use MobileMe as the portal. I’m sure they will integrate Lala.com into MobileMe as well. Use their current portfolio of devices to play the content, and integrate Netflix with iTunes for desktop integration. Let the mobile devices like iPhones and iPod’s act as remote controls for streaming content. I think a lot of people will buy the Apple TV if it can deliver the depth of content that people expect to watch these days. The model has to be economical, and that’s where Netflix rocks. Now whether they decide to keep the Netflix DVD distribution centers will depend on where they think the future is. Personally, I think physical media is effectively dead. A monthly subscription model that lets you consume content as opposed to pay-per-item is the way to go. At the end of the day, a person can only consume so much at a time, and that’s why Netflix works.

I don’t think Netflix needs Apple, but I think Apple needs Netflix. Netflix has a business model that’s clearly working. Sure they are competing with the likes of Blockbuster and others, but they have a strong brand presence and still enjoy the benefits of being first to market with the model. Apple enjoys a strong reputation in the online music space, but really it’s just content at the end of the day. Allowing people to get everything from movies, tv shows, podcases, music and pictures on one device can give them the edge in the battle for the digital hub. The one think they’ll need to find a way to add is Live content from third-party sources, but I think the device has the capacity to handle it. Apple should just build or acquire a live streaming service that can fill in the gaps.

Obviously, this is looking at things from the point of view of what’s good for Apple, and not necessarily the consumer. That being said, consumers will benefit as soon as traditional cable TV outlets realize that they cannot charge ungodly amounts of money from consumers for the limited content that most people actually consume. Hopefully this leads to competition from the likes of Amazon, Google, and Comcast.

Apple may end up spreading themselves too thin here also, which is always a risk for a company trying to do too much because it thinks others can’t do it well enough. To some degree, Apple has been successful in doing many things well. They are a huge music retailer, a huge consumer electronics retailer, and a very successful Cell Phone manufacturer. Apple designs and makes their own hardware and also their own operating systems. They also make a decent list of desktop software for both costumer and prosumer audiences. While not very successful at it, they are also trying their hand at a cloud presence with MobileMe, and if the past is any reflection of what’s to come, you will see them add a lot to MobileMe to make the offering more appealing to a wider audience (see my earlier comment on the Lala.com acquisition). Now with the iPad, they are also getting into selling books. They already sell movies and TV shows on iTunes. Can a company really do all these things and do them well? I would say so far Apple is somewhere between a B+ and an A- in my books. The one thing they have been successful at is making sure their products talk to each other, and in a large part this is because they understand communication protocols that are seamless. Bonjour is a good example of an implementation that just works.

Eventually, I see them moving to more of a partner model. Where the App store thrives is the broadness of content. Same with the iTunes store. Whether it’s music labels, App developers, book publishers or other media outlets, Apple can offer them a platform that seems to be catching on with consumers. They may need to give up some control so as to not piss off the partners (like the App store has demonstrated), but having some control to ensure the integrity of the platform has definitely shown that it leads to a stable device. Instead of being the body that is responsible for approving content, Apple could look to crowdsource this task, or find some third-party that can do it more effectively while not tarnishing Apple’s image.

At the end of the day, the cloud is where its’ at, and Apple is a bit late to the party. MobileMe started off with a bloody nose and has since tried to redeem itself, but there just isn’t enough for consumers like myself to drop $100 per year for the service. On the other hand, I feel like my monthly Netflix subscription is actually well worth the money. Merge the two, and i’ll likely drink the KoolAid. Apple has a sizable mobile device market and a growing personal computer presence. The iPad’s success demonstrates that their products resinate with consumers and the premium price tag isn’t holding everyone back. Their two questionable ventures are MobileMe and AppleTV - and both can benefit from the NetFlix acquisition. Maybe my next blog post will be about them buying Vimeo while they’re at it. And why stop there - Tumblr is so Apple-esque. Fine, I got carried away there, so let’s wrap it up.

Now off to celebrate Cinco De Mayo with a catfish burrito in Carlsbad, CA!

Pacified!

Mon, 03 May 2010 20:28:00 -0400

Pacified!

Mr. Meltdown. Notice the kid’s already rockin’...

Mon, 03 May 2010 20:25:03 -0400

Mr. Meltdown. Notice the kid’s already rockin’ Polo’s!

My Son. Dhruv!

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 02:53:09 -0400

My Son. Dhruv!

See, proof that I still get some sleep at nights…

Thu, 08 Apr 2010 22:44:16 -0400

See, proof that I still get some sleep at nights…

But I’m still a gadget guy… and here is a picture of...

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:18:15 -0400

But I’m still a gadget guy… and here is a picture of my latest gizmo that I may play around with once I get a few minutes.

WowWee Rovio.

Dhruv Mohan! This past week has been an amazing journey into...

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:14:58 -0400

Dhruv Mohan!

This past week has been an amazing journey into fatherhood. Here’s a picture of the little guy.

Baby Mohan is here. Roshni is doing well & recovering!

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 02:28:22 -0400

Baby Mohan is here. Roshni is doing well & recovering!

My son has too many clothes already. This is a picture if his...

Mon, 29 Mar 2010 22:21:30 -0400

My son has too many clothes already. This is a picture if his closet, and he’s not even born yet!!

Moving

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:07:33 -0400

I can’t believe were all moved in and getting ready for the baby already. It’s as amazing as having two parking spots in Brookline!

If I never have to unbox another cardboard box and then crush it, I’d be thrilled. Today is a beautiful day in Boston. I’m exhausted from being at the hospital until almost 3:00am this morning, but happy that we have an active baby that’s making the doctors not stress out. Somehow I still don’t feel ready for the delivery but I guess you never really do. Next task on my list is to get the carseat installed.

At the dr’s office now listening to the heartbeat of a very active little boy. It is amazing!!

Should I add this to my Scotch Collection? I’ve never had...

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:46:26 -0500

Should I add this to my Scotch Collection? I’ve never had this Scotch before so I need to find a local place where I can try this variety first..

I'm getting an iBaby instead (for anyone asking if i'm getting an iPad)

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:04:46 -0500

ABC's of Religion

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:31:57 -0500

I got this from The Lost Symbol.. Religions A, assure salvation, B - believe in a precise theology, and C, converts non-believers.

Hinduism is not a religion. It doesn’t fit the bill!

Creative

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:58:36 -0500

The Wikipedia definition of creative is:

Creativity is a mental and social process involving the discovery of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the creative mind between existing ideas or concepts. Creativity is fueled by the process of either conscious or unconsciousinsight. An alternative conception of creativeness (based on its etymology) is that it is simply the act of making something new.

My definition is simply - “someone who creates something new” is creative.

I had a long drawn out debate about a comment I made that “People in India are not Creative”. What that means to me, and hopefully to the readers, is that “Generally, people in India are not driven to Create something new”. It is not a knock on my people. It is just a reality that I have observed. A simple way to look at it is the following. We have a solid foundation for Math and Science in our educational system (or so it is believed) and a large number of young students get into Software Development or the IT field. How many Indian Software companies can you name? I’m talking true Software companies that sell a branded software product like a Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, or a smaller outfit like Norton or McAfee. Resist the temptation to throw our names like Wipro or InfoSys as most would regard these as services companies. Wipro used to stand for Western Indian Products - for inquiring minds.

Anyway, the point is not simply that a large number of software developers should have lead to at least a reasonable number of Software companies. The point is that the trend is quite widespread across other industries. The creation of new products and companies in the US is to some degree driven by the desire to create the next big thing. It is not simply a matter of “not working for the Man”. Creativity is an integral part of a civilizations realization or desire to build on what has been done already. We refer to India as part of the Developing world - not by co-incidence, but by lack of definition. I remember hearing once that “India is not a developing country, but rather a highly developed country in an extended state of decay”. I found that to be a very profound statement. How can we refer to the US as a developed country in it’s very short history, and refer to India as a Developing country in it’s rather extensive history? The problem is that we tend to think of things as very black & white - and that’s where we mis-step. Being creative is either a luxury or a necessity, depending on your perspective. On the ‘Global Creative Index’, India is listed as 41 out of 45 countries that made that list. The question I ask is, why would someone be creative if their lifestyle doesn’t support it. I think in the US, creativity is driven by the fact that we have the luxury to experiment and have the tools to build on top of what’s been done before, and we have the luxury of being able to survive. The education system here, flawed as it may be, provides the necessary tools to influence ones future direction. The educational system in India, from what I read, lends itself well to educating yourself, but not truly learning. It encourages people to memorize and copy without critical thinking. At the same time, it does a very good job of “training” people on very fundamental skills of math and science. It doesn’t however encourage the culture of critical thinking, questioning, imagining, innovating, and creating. When people make statements like “The Milk man in India is creative because he adds water to it”, it fails the basic definition of Creativity, and falls below the threshold of an intelligent statement.

Creativity is a process - we build on top of what has been done before. I sometimes am amazed by the stuff that is sold on the “As seen on TV” ad’s where the fundamental idea is ingenious and solves a real problem that can be demonstrated to a side audience. Now granted, the Flow-bee vacuum attachment to cut once’s hair may have been excessive, but it isn’t without it’s failures that we find some products that truly work. The chances of success are probably slim, but not everyone is driven by financial success. Sometimes, people just have that idea that clicks. Whether it’s software, hardware, or an invisible Dog Fence, the fact that it creates something new is what changes the game a bit. It can be an idea, a piece of Art, or music that fires up a passionate reaction - it’s all creative. Some may credit Bollywood as being very creative, and that is certainly an argument worth considering. However, a lot of Bollywood movies are predictable because they are copied from western films. Indian music is amazing and certainly creative in many aspects, but it’s a limited industry that can really qualify as representative of a massive population.

Is it a problem of over-population? Perhaps it is. China in my view is even more un-original in idea and execution. Maybe when you get to be such a populous society, the focus shifts from creating to consuming. India is certainly a consumer society. But whet do we in India consume?

An article I read made the case that the Tata Nano was one of India’s proudest creations. O.K. - how so? What is so unique about the small car that isn’t available in any other car? Or is it just the natural progression of any product where the price can be reduced drastically because of advancements in technology, availability of affordable labor, and marketing? I beg to argue that it’s the latter in the case of the Nano. It’s the equivalent of a Netbook that has so quickly entered the traditional Laptop space and eroded it.

So when we argue about Creativity, we should be honest and open-minded, and not take things too personally. If we as a people are not creative, then let’s look at the environment that discourages creativity. Whether it’s the educational system, the political system, the family structure - or any other external factors. Let’s talk about those things that drive people towards being generic and un-creative. If we can’t accept the problem, we can’t fix it.

Jai Hind!