How a Mainstream Media Manager could Change the Entire Industry
The same way Android revolutionized the Smartphone Market
Technology has changed dramatically in the past 10 years.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the proliferation of mobile devices.
About a decade ago, the iPhone was relatively new. Most people carried a cellular phone, but using them for simple tasks like browsing the web was a painful experience best left to larger PCs and laptops.
Fast forward, and there are over 2.5 billion devices running Google’s Android, in all shapes and sizes, from smartphones to tablets, and even refrigerators now come with touch screens, and televisions, an OS.
Something similar is happening in the media industry. Television used to be something confined to a big screen in the living room, tethered to a jack in the wall.
The same way Android brought a new level of usability that improved the user experience of smartphones and enabled a slew of new device categories, a similar technology could revolutionize media for the 21st century.
Parallels with Android
It’s no coincidence that FreeCast’s business model looks a lot like Google’s strategy with Android.
Like Google, FreeCast is the parent company that creates the platform.
That platform is known as the company’s SmartGuide. And much like Android, that SmartGuide powers numerous products available through a variety of brands.
And again, like Google, some of these products are first-party, sold or operated by FreeCast itself, while others are licensed or co-branded with other companies.
The same way you can buy a Samsung or Huawei smartphone with Google’s operating system, customers will be able to purchase hardware or subscribe to services from a variety of brands that are powered by FreeCast’s SmartGuide.
Android is more than just an operating system for devices. It plays an important role for developers as well, as a sales and distribution point for millions of apps. Likewise, FreeCast’s SmartGuide fills a similar role, creating a platform for content providers to reach a wide base of consumers.
The Cusp of a Revolution
To understand the opportunity that FreeCast is creating, think back to the early smartphones before the iPhone/Android duopoly dominated.
Various manufacturers used a variety of operating systems, often proprietary. The experience wasn’t uniform, and there wasn’t much software support, because it made so little sense for developers to target disparate devices and platforms.
Getting everyone on the same platform was a powerful development that changed the game.
The media industry is in the same situation as the mobile device industry was in about 2007. Consumers are expecting more from their media products, and they’re defecting from the old incumbents in massive numbers.
Currently they’re bouncing between an ineffective patchwork of apps, services, and hardware solutions. An Android-style media management service that ties it all together would be a similar coup that would make cord-cutting the norm rather than a novelty.
