the.world.is.flat-第34章

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actually　a　file…sharing　architecture　by　which　Napster　facilitated　a　connection　
between　my　computer　and　yours　so　that　we　could　swap　music　files。　The　original　Napster　
is　dead；　but　file…sharing　technologyis　still　around　and　is　getting　more　sophisticated　
every　day；　greatly　enhancing　collaboration。　
Finally；　add　one　last　hardware　steroid　that　brings　these　technology　breakthroughs　
together　for　consumers：　the　steady　breakthrough　in　multipurpose　devices…ever　smaller　
and　more　powerful　laptops；　cell　phones；　
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you　could　practically　feel　the　breath　of　the　other　parties　to　the　videocon…ference；　
when　in　fact　half　of　us　were　in　Santa　Barbara　and　half　were　five　hundred　miles　away。　
Because　DreamWorks　is　doing　film　and　animation　work　all　over　the　world；　it　felt　that　
it　had　to　have　a　videoconferencing　solution　where　its　creative　people　could　really　
communicate　all　their　thoughts；　facial　expressions；　feelings；　ire；　enthusiasm；　and　
raised　eyebrows。　HP's　chief　strategy　and　technology　officer；　Shane　Robison；　told　me　
that　HP　plans　to　have　these　videoconferencing　suites　for　sale　by　2005　at　a　cost　of　
roughly　250；000　each。　That　is　nothing　compared　to　the　airline　tickets　and　wear　and　
tear　on　executives　having　to　travel　regularly　to　London　or　Tokyo　for　face…to…face　
meetings。　Companies　could　easily　make　one　of　these　suites　pay　for　itself　in　a　year。　
This　level　of　videoconferencing；　once　it　proliferates；　will　make　remote　development；　
outsourcing；　and　off…shoring　that　much　easier　and　more　efficient。　
And　now　the　icing　on　the　cake；　the　iibersteroid　that　makes　it　all　mobile：　wireless。　
Wireless　is　what　will　allow　you　take　everything　that　has　been　digitized；　made　virtual　
and　personal；　and　do　it　from　anywhere。　
〃The　natural　state　of　communications　is　wireless；〃　argued　Alan　Cohen；　the　senior　vice　
president　at　Airespace。　It　started　with　voice；　because　people　wanted　to　be　able　to　
make　a　phone　call　anytime；　from　anyplace；　to　anywhere。　That　is　why　for　many　people　
the　cell　phone　is　the　most　importantphone　they　own。　By　the　early　twenty…first　century；　
people　began　to　develop　that　same　expectation　and　with　it　the　desire　for　data　
communication…the　ability　to　access　the　Internet；　e…mail；　or　any　business　files　
anytime；　anywhere；　using　a　cell　phone；　PalmPilot；　or　some　other　personal　device。　（And　
now　a　third　element　is　entering　the　picture；　creating　more　demand　for　wireless　
technology　and　enhancing　the　flattening　of　the　earth：　machines　talking　to　machines　
wirelessly；　such　as　Wal…Mart's　RFIDchips；　little　wireless　devices　that　automatically　
transmit　information　to　suppliers'　computers；　allowing　them　to　track　inventory。）　
In　the　early　days　of　computing　（Globalization　2。0）；　you　worked　in　the　office。　There　
was　a　big　mainframe　computer；　and　you　literally　had　to　walk　over　and　get　the　people　
running　the　mainframe　to　extract　or　input　
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information　for　you。　It　was　like　an　oracle。　Then；　thanks　to　the　PC　and　the　Internet；　
e…mail；　the　laptop；　the　browser；　and　the　client　server；　I　could　access　from　my　own　
screen　all　sorts　of　data　and　information　being　stored　on　the　network。　In　this　era　


you　were　delinked　from　the　office　and　could　work　at　home；　at　the　beach　house；　or　in　
a　hotel。　Now　we　are　in　Globalization　3。0；　where；　thanks　to　digitization；　
miniaturization；　virtualization；　personalization；　and　wireless；　I　can　be　processing；　
collecting；　or　transmitting　voice　or　data　from　anywhere　to　anywhere…as　an　individual　
or　as　a　machine。　
〃Your　desk　goes　with　you　everywhere　you　are　now；〃　said　Cohen。　And　the　more　people　
have　the　ability　to　push　and　pull　information　from　anywhere　to　anywhere　faster；　the　
more　barriers　to　competition　and　communication　disappear。　All　of　a　sudden；　my　business　
has　phenomenal　distribution。　I　don't　care　whether　you　are　in　Bangalore　or　Bangor；　
I　can　get　to　you　and　you　can　get　to　me。　More　and　more；　people　now　want　and　expect　
wireless　mobility　to　be　there；　just　like　electricity。　We　are　rapidly　moving　into　the　
age　of　the　〃mobile　me；〃　said　Padmasree　Warrior；　the　chief　technology　officer　of　
Motorola。　If　consumers　are　paying　for　any　form　of　content；　whether　it　is　information；　
entertainment；　data；　games；　or　stock　quotes；　they　increasingly　want　to　be　able　to　
access　it　anytime；　anywhere。　
Right　now　consumers　are　caught　in　a　maze　of　wireless　technology　offerings　and　
standards　that　are　still　not　totally　interoperable。　As　we　all　know；　some　wireless　
technology　works　in　one　neighborhood；　state；　or　country　and　not　in　another。　
The　〃mobile　me〃　revolution　will　be　complete　when　you　can　move　seamlessly　around　the　
town；　the　country；　or　the　world　with　whatever　device　you　want。　The　technology　is　
getting　there。　When　this　is　fully　diffused；　the　〃mobile　me〃　will　have　its　full　
flattening　effect；　by　freeing　people　to　truly　be　able　to　work　and　communicate　from　
anywhere　to　anywhere　with　anything。　
I　got　a　taste　of　what　is　coming　by　spending　a　morning　at　the　Tokyo　headquarters　of　
NTT　DoCoMo；　the　Japanese　cellular　giant　that　is　at　the　cutting　edge　of　this　process　
and　far　ahead　of　America　in　offering　total　interoperability　inside　Japan。　DoCoMo　is　
an　abbreviation　for　Do　

Communications　Over　the　Mobile　Network；　it　also　means　〃anywhere〃　in　Japanese。　My　day　
at　DoCoMo's　headquarters　started　with　a　tour　conducted　by　a　robot；　which　bowed　in　
perfect　Japanese　fashion　and　then　gave　me　a　spin　around　DoCoMo's　showroom；　which　now　
features　handheld　video　cell　phones　so　you　can　see　the　person　you　are　speaking　with。　
〃Young　people　are　using　our　mobile　phones　today　as　two…way　videophones；〃　explained　
Tamon　Mitsuishi；　senior　VP　of　the　Ubiquitous　Business　Department　at　DoCoMo。　〃Everyone　
takes　out　their　phones；　they　start　dialing　each　other　and　have　visual　conversations。　
Of　course　there　are　some　people　who　prefer　not　to　see　each　other's　faces。〃　Thanks　
to　DoCoMo　technology；　if　you　don't　want　to　show　your　face　you　can　substitute　a　cartoon　
character　for　yourself　and　manipulate　the　keyboard　so　that　it　not　only　will　speak　
for　you　but　also　will　get　angry　for　you　and　get　happy　for　you。　〃So　this　is　a　mobile　
phone；　and　video　camera；　but　it　has　also　evolved　to　the　extent　that　it　has　functions　
similar　to　a　PC；〃　he　added。　〃You　need　to　move　your　buttons　quickly　＇with　your　thumb＇。　
We　call　ourselves　'the　thumb　people。'　Young　girls　in　high　school　can　now　move　their　
thumbs　faster　than　they　can　type　on　a　PC。〃　
By　the　way；　I　asked；　what　does　the　〃Ubiquitous　Department〃　do？　


〃Now　that　we　have　seen　the　spread　of　the　Internet　around　the　world；〃　answered　Mitsuishi；　
〃what　we　believe　we　have　to　offer　is　the　next　step。　Internet　communication　until　today　
has　been　mostly　between　individuals…e…mail　and　other　information。　But　what　we　are　
already　starting　to　see　is　communication　between　individuals　and　machines　and　between　
machines。　We　are　moving　into　that　kind　of　phenomenon；　because　people　want　to　lead　
a　richer　lifestyle；　and　businesses　want　more　efficient　practices　。。。　So　young　people　
in　their　business　life　use　PCs　in　the　offices；　but　in　their　private　time　they　base　
their　lifestyles　on　a　mobile　phone。　There　is　now　a　growing　movement　to　allow　payment　
by　mobile　phone。　＇With＇　a　smart　card　you　will　be　able　to　make　payments　in　virtual　
shops　and　smart　shops。　So　next　to　the　cash　register　there　will　be　a　reader　of　the　
card；　and　you　just　scan　your　phone　and　it　becomes　your　credit　card　too　。　。　。　
〃We　believe　that　the　mobile　phone　will　become　the　essential　con…　
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trailer　of　a　person's　life；〃　added　Mitsuishi；　oblivious　of　the　double　meaning　of　the　
English　word　〃control。〃　〃For　example；　in　the　medical　field　it　will　be　your　
authentication　system　and　you　can　examine　your　medical　records；　and　to　make　payments　
you　will　have　to　hold　a　mobile　phone。　You　will　not　be　able　to　lead　a　life　without　
a　mobile　phone；　and　it　will　control　things　at　home　too。　We　believe　that　we　need　to　
expand　the　range　of　machines　that　can　be　controlled　by　mobile　phone。〃　
There　is　plenty　to　worry　about　in　this　future；　from　kids　being　lured　by　online　sexual　
predators　through　their　cell　phones；　to　employees　spending　too　much　time　playing　
mindless　phone　games；　to　people　using　their　phone　cameras　for　all　sorts　of　illicit　
activities。　Some　Japanese　were　going　into　bookstores；　pulling　down　cookbooks；　and　
taking　pictures　of　the　recipes　and　then　walking　out。　Fortunately；　camera　phones　are　
now　being　enabled　to　make　a　noise　when　they　shoot　a　picture；　so　that　a　store　owner；　
or　the　person　standing　next　to　you　in　the　locker　room；　will　know　if　he　is　on　Candid　
Camera。　Because　your　Internet…enabled　camera　phone　is　not　just　a　camera；　it　is　also　
a　copy　machine；　with　worldwide　distribution　potential。　
DoCoMo　is　now　working　with　other　Japanese　companies　on　an　arrangement　by　which　you　
may　be　walking　down　the　street　and　see　a　poster　of　a　concert　by　Madonna　in　Tokyo。　
The　poster　will　have　a　bar　code　and　you　can　buy　your　tickets　by　just　scanning　the　
bar　code。　Another　poster　might　be　for　a　new　Madonna　CD。　Just　scan　the　bar　code　with　
your　cell　phone　and　it　will　give　you　a　sample　of　the　songs。　If　you　like　them；　scan　
it　again　and　you　can　buy　the　whole　album　and　have　it　home…delivered。　No　wonder　my　
New　York　Times　colleague　in　Japan；　Todd　Zaun；　who　is　married　to　a　Japanese　woman；　
remarked　to　me　that　there　is　so　much　information　the　Japanese　can　now　access　from　
their　Internet…enabled　wireless　phones　that　〃when　I　am　with　my　Japanese　relatives　
and　someone　has　a　question；　the　first　thing　they　do　is　reach　for　the　phone。〃　
I'm　exhausted　just　writing　about　all　this。　But　it　is　hard　to　exaggerate　how　much　this　
tenth　flattener…the　steroids…is　going　to　amplify　and　further　empower　all　the　other　
forms　of　collaboration。　These　steroids　should　
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make　open…source　innovation　that　much　more　open；　because　they　will　enable　more　
individuals　to　collaborate　with　one　another　in　more　ways　and　from　more　places　than　


ever　before。　They　will　enhance　outsourcing；　because　they　will　make　it　so　much　easier　
for　a　single　department　of　any　company　to　collaborate　with　another　company。　They　will　
enhance　supply…chaining；　because　headquarters　will　be　able　to　be　connected　in　real　
time　with　every　individual　employee　stocking　the　shelves；　every　individual　package；　
and　every　Chinese　factory　manufacturing　the　stuff　inside　them。　They　will　enhance　
insourcing…having　a　company　like　UPS　come　deep　inside　a　retailer　and　manage　its　whole　
supply　chain；　using　drivers　who　can　interact　with　its　warehouses；　and　with　every　
customer；　carrying　his　own　PDA。　And　most　obviously；　they　will　enhance　informing…the　
ability　to　manage　your　own　knowledge　supply　chain。　
Sir　John　Rose；　the　chief　executive　of　Rolls…Royce；　gave　me　a　wonderful　example　of　
how　wireless　and　other　steroids　are　enhancing　Rolls…Royce's　ability　to　do　work　flow　
and　other　new　forms　of　collaboration　with　its　customers。　Let's　say　you　are　British　
Airways　and　you　are　flying　a　Boeing　777　across　the　Atlantic。　Somewhere　over　Greenland；　
one　of　your　Rolls…Royce　engines　gets　hit　with　lightning。　The　passengers　and　pilots　
might　be　worried；　but　there　is　no　need。　Rolls…Royce　is　on　the　case。　That　Rolls…Royce　
engine　is　connected　by　transponder　to　a　satellite　and　is　beaming　data　about　its　
c