Thursday, January 24, 2008

Today in the "New Yorker" (Online), it was published that "Without a Hit Razr Sequel, Profit Drops for Motorola". Many have either have heard of, or have, one of these nifty little gadgets whose proper use is being a cell phone, but range from a variety of different uses such as a portable messaging device to a video camera or what have you. I myself don't have one, but I can't help but notice its massive popularity both among my friends and the general public.

Unfortunately now it seems as though Motorola cannot keep up with themselves... by trying to renew their "old" Razr cell phone, the company faces the challenge of perfecting a number one seller which, obviously, is going to be more challenging then expected. "Executives said demand for Motorola’s cellphones had slowed and the company was losing market share. In the fourth quarter, the company earned $100 million, or 4 cents a share, down from $623 million, or 25 cents a share, a year earlier" (Holson, 1). I have to ask, is this lowering in profit due to the fact Motorola put out a best seller and can't reproduce a product as good as the "Razr"? Or is it just that they can't keep up with yearn of change? It seems more plausible that it is the latter of the two. "...analysts say cellphone makers not only need to be more savvy about what consumers want now, but also need to better anticipate consumers’ future needs — even before they know what they will want themselves" (Holson, 1).

What is most concerning about this statement is the fact that cellphone makers "...need to better anticipate consumers' future needs...". As long as it's a functioning cellular device, aren't the rest all added features? What are the other "needs" exactly? In reality what is being said is that cellphone makers need to keep up with the consumers' wish of multiplying and advancing media. This puts into perspective the idea of remediation... a perfectly functional and popular device becomes no longer desirable, because consumers want something more improved and more efficient.


Citations

Holson, Laura M.. "Without a Hit Razr Sequel, Profit Drops for Motorola." New York Times 24, JAN, 2008 24, JAN, 2008 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/24/technology/24motorola.html?_r=1&ref=technology&oref=slogin.

1 comment:

I. Reilly said...

i think what's central about thinking about the decline in popularity of motorola cell phones has to do in part with the relationships that are forged between technologies and their consumers. it may have nothing to do with the razr, but it may have everything to do with the way consumers feel about a particular product and the relevance that product has in people's lives. this may be worth exploring more thoroughly.

nice to see that your blog is up and running.

keep writing,
i.