Mobcasting The Future

Mobcasting The Future
Even before I had a chance to lament the death of ARCTX, Andy Carvin's evolution of the genius marketing of Podcasting (by Apple Computer and unwitting media accomplices) caught my eye. There is a strong future for audio media that permits discussion (which podcasting does not), and the concept of Mobcasting meets this in concept. We're not discussing simple downloading of MP3 files and listening to them - we're discussing the ability for discussion using audio formats, existing technology and future technology.

The more I have thought about mobcasting - sifting through my own experiences - the more I have seen the potential for something which can be built without disasters, and used during disasters. That alone makes it a worthy candidate, because the problem with disaster related technologies is that they atrophy between disasters. Mobcasting technology would not. Thus mobcasting is now my new pet project.

But before getting into technical details - something that is being discussed - let's talk about real life scenarios. Let's talk about how mobcasting can improve the quality of life of people - which is really what I am interested in. It's not about selling an idea for financial profit to me as it is about having a profit in the quality of life for people around the world. The way mobcasting so far has been discussed is centered around producing a better quality of life for people, allowing for conversation and allowing people to focus on communicating instead of the technologies themselves. And instead of being dependant on a proprietary piece of hardware where usage is limited by what a manufacturer dictates (see picture to the left), mobcasting may well dictate where we - the community - decide to go, and decide how we get there.

Great Minds Unfettered

Like the School of Athens, mobcasting has the potential to virtually put great minds in the same 'room' for discussion - and while this is done now through the interface of a keyboard, the spoken word allows for more flexibility - such that a discussion can take place like a telephone call, with recording ability such that it can be shared. Imagine global leaders being able to not only have discussions publicly in real time - but being able to do so without even being in the same room. Transparency would be well served in this way, and perhaps this is the problem - perhaps the transparency would threaten these global leaders. And yet, what if you could listen to conversations of world leaders in real time without having to pay for their flights, security and lodging around the world?

While not a replacement for face-to-face meetings, this does serve as a very cost effective tool.





In much the same way, the unfettered minds could be people working on a project together in real time - documenting as they go. While this ability is inherent in radio and telephone, the financial barrier for entry is high because of the equipment involved - mobcasting serves as a way to tear down that barrier. And while this explanation is very vague, it is only vague because of the inherent lack of limitation. Our imagination in it's use is our only limit - but here are a few examples of what can be done with it in very practical ways.

Medicine
Probably the greatest benefit from mobcasting in terms of quality of life can be seen in medicine. While much of what mobcasting does is presently done in the medical field, this requires specialized and subsequently expensive equipment. This also means that the use of the systems is inflexible - and as anyone who has spent time in the medical field can say, there is much that is very flexible in the medical field, especially in the context of medical cases. Further, this can provide a linked history, recorded, allowing multiple perspectives at the same time - thus allowing better patient histories and case histories, and perhaps ultimately better patient care. Consider the following scenarios:

Having a conversation with a doctor from a remote place, as Michael Crichton touched on in his book Five Patients - only with reduced cost such that clinics could better service their area.
Medical transcription through central servers, where medical transcriptionists could ask for clarification of things that they do not understand in real time.
Distance consultations with specialists by Doctors - in real time.
Distance discussion of medical cases between doctors, nurses and administrators.
Emergency Medical Technicians can get live information not only from doctors and coordinating facilities, but also other Emergency Medical Technicians in the area. This is extremely useful in mass casualty scenarios - from blood, to water purification tablets, to simple normal saline.
Immediate transmission of lab and X-Ray results from remote laboratories and radiologists, pending dictation, which can be used to treat the patient even while the paperwork is still being done - yet providing part of a permanent record of the patient's treatment.

Again, all of this can be done now - but where it is done, it is done through specialized equipment. What if you could do it with $500 of computer hardware and some cell phones? That's the real benefit - which also benefits patients, and ultimately society, since medical costs can go down when compared to resulting quality of life. And something like this could potentially be set up in a matter of hours, for rapid response to mass casualty scenarios as well as problems at sea, or in the air.

Maybe it's not a heart replacement. But maybe it can help a heart get to the right place.

Journalism

One of the original ways in which mobcasting was thought of great use was in covering real time events - demonstrations, crises, and maybe even something as simple as traffic reports. What used to be the a pencil, notepad and telephone - later becoming portable computer or a cellular phone and pencil and paper - can all be done in real time - much like a podcast, but with one significant difference: All of the information can be centrally located and linked. While eventually the information can be transcribed, for real time coverage and coordination of coverage, mobcasting has definite yet unrealized potential in this area.

Meetings

Every year, millions of dollars are spent flying people around from one part of the world to another for meetings. While the need for these meetings cannot be denied in some instances, it's also likely that some of these meetings could be done with technology such as mobcasting across the globe - be it for business, for NGOs, and even for government.

Multilingualism

One of the greatest issues facing the internet is the length of time it takes to translate things at times - as well as the logistics involved. Yet interpreters do it in real-time all over the world. Imagine that they could not only do this remotely - but that also transcription could happen per language at the same time, allowing people to interact through their native languages around the world while creating permanent records for people. And, as someone noted, cultures with oral traditions may well find this worth investigating.

In all, Mobcasting is more than it appears on the surface. It's more than what I have written here, and it's limited only by our imaginations and application of it and our imaginations. While software is the main issue right now, it's important to consider the scenarios that it could be used in so that the software can be designed to meet and exceed these scenarios.

And obviously, there are business possibilities as well - services that can be provided through modcasting, or simply leveraging mobcasting to allow for higher quality and speed of service with reduced cost.



http://www.digitaldivide.net/blog/Taran/view?PostID=3692

모바일 포드캐스팅.....
이쪽 분야는 애니콜이 이끌어나갈수도 있을듯 합니다.