In the midst of tremendous disruption, it is impossible to tell where the global media industry is ultimately heading. But a recent analysis from the Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) explores four possible future scenarios for the media industry. While they do not “predict” the future, the scenarios help build our understanding of possible outcomes — and how various industry players could be affected.
The Shape of Things To Come: Four Scenarios
We explored the ways certain industry developments could swing future outcomes. Combining these drivers into logical groupings (consumer behavior, regulatory requirements, technology, and macroeconomic conditions), we were able to define the following four scenarios, as shown in Figure 1. These scenarios are differentiated by consumer demand, industry structure, and content supply:
Dark Ages — low demand, consolidated industry, and relatively low content supply
Survival of the Fittest — low demand, fragmented industry, and high content supply
Golden Age of Content — high demand, consolidated industry, and controlled content supply
Wonderland — high demand, fragmented industry, and high content supply
Obviously, each of the scenarios will have different winners and losers. The financial impact and the implications for players across the industry value chain will substantially change by scenario. And in each scenario, distributors and infrastructure providers will need to consider different types of investments. Consequently, each type of player will need to adapt its competitive responses to the future scenario taking shape.
Figure 1. Four Future Scenarios Are Based on Various Groupings of Industry Drivers.
Source: Cisco IBSG, 2013
Following are examples of how two future scenarios could play out: Read More »
Great challenges can bring great opportunities to any business, and with the inevitability of cloud on the horizon, IT organizations will need to embrace this change. Taking the first, second or even third step can be scary, but the return on taking such risks will pay off so long as the IT organization champions the deployment.
Cisco itself has also had to face these risks of deploying cloud, and has already embarked on the private cloud (IaaS) journey —all the way from virtualizing the compute, network, and storage resources to integrating change management, and metering services for “pay as you use”.
Some of the challenges that we encountered typical that other IT organizations could face in cloud adoption were:
• Ensuring security. Each cloud solution has to be matched to appropriate security capabilities. The new capabilities may include centralized management (vs. trying to manage firewalls on ever-changing edges or trying to manage security on each endpoint), scalable multi-tenant architectures, real-time threat analysis and dynamic mitigation delivery.
• Navigating the required steps. Even the public cloud model is never one-size-fits-all. A successful cloud initiative requires several best practice steps, which occur in three phases:
Plan, including aligning the business and architecture strategies, planning and design, and security.
Build, including staging, testing, and implementing solutions and systems integration.
Manage, including network assurance, remote monitoring/diagnostics/alerts, optimization, and support.
• Establishing the business justification. Calculate the projected and actual ROI from cloud project expenses for equipment and services.
It’s very rare for any IT organization to already have all the in-house expertise and experience that’s required for a cloud project. This will eventually happen, but IT organizations can fast-track their cloud initiatives by partnering with a company that understands the cloud journey.
Cisco Services has a proven methodology for implementing private clouds that can help ensure your agency makes a smooth and effective transition to cloud. It starts with the Cisco Domain TenSM discussion to identify where you need to focus among ten crucial areas:
Cisco Cloud Enablement Services professionals and Cisco Certified Partners can guide you through any, or all, of the plan, build, and manage steps. They can help you integrate the entire cloud solution, including reducing the complexity of security.
New cloud platforms are rapidly transforming government IT—just as client/server and mainframe/terminal platforms did in decades past.
If you embark on the cloud journey, you’re committing to an exciting and long-term opportunity. And when you step out your door to head to work each day, you’ll be an agent of change for your organization and your career.
I’m curious, what do you see as the biggest challenges to a government entity adopting a cloud model?
Stay tuned to view upcoming installations of the Cloud for Local Government blog series or click here to register and reserve your copy of the complete compilation of the blog series, including this blog as well as a variety of cloud resources, which will be available in May.
Many organizations are getting on board with the cloud. But the transition can be tough. There are many aspects to consider before going virtual, including security, possible downtime, application migration, and ease of deployment. So where do you start?
Cisco has the answers and expertise that you are seeking. To learn more about how to prep for a cloud transition, consider attending our event “Transforming Your Data Center with Cisco Domain Ten (SM)”. This live webinar will take place on February 27, 2013, at 10:00 AM PST (1:00 PM EST).
At this event, you will learn why the best path to the cloud is a comprehensive approach. The Cisco Domain Ten is a framework built by industry experts that establishes the ten most important domains of the data center. These areas are considered, prioritized, and mapped out so the transformation of your data center is smooth and simple.
In addition, we will provide common use cases and information regarding new approaches to modernization, and how they can affect data center transformation plans. We will wrap up with a Q&A session with Cisco experts.
If you are one of the many who recognize the benefits of the cloud and are ready to take action, this webinar will help you begin your journey. Learn more by clicking here, or register online now!
As South Korea’s second-largest metropolitan city, Busan boasts a population of about 3.6 million, and is home to a slew of major companies, government agencies, universities, annual festivals, and conferences. Busan is the country’s largest container-handling port, and the fifth- largest in the world. Like other metropolitan areas, the city struggles with managing terrible traffic congestion and the attendant high logistical costs; maintaining job-creation momentum for the 60,000 high-quality and high-skill job seekers who graduate from area universities each year; and meeting the demand for an innovative city operations system that helps ensure global competitiveness.
Cisco IBSG has been working with Busan’s Metropolitan Government to develop plans for a “u-City.” U, in this case, stands for “ubiquitous,” which also describes the city’s broadband penetration. Busan’s “smart and connected” urban communities use the network as a platform—on top of which it can deploy innovative urban-planning solutions and city management services. The city uses the network to connect, process, and share information efficiently, and in real time. Read More »
Cisco IBSG’s recent interviews with about 45 enterprise CIOs and architects clearly revealed that enterprises have a preference for private cloud. They want to maintain control over their IT, especially where the architecture is new and skills need to be built. In addition, they are not comfortable with accepting externally provided cloud solutions (although there are certainly exceptions).
At the same time, the survey indicated that once enterprises have gained private-cloud experience, they are more willing to allocate this architecture to an external provider.
This is reminiscent of the classic outsourcing cycle, where corporate functions are moved externally once they have become a commodity.
Source: Cisco IBSG, 2013
