Several years ago, NTCA’s Smart Rural Community initiative published a paper that explored changing job market trends and how broadband deployment in rural areas can help schools and students align educational processes to meet those changes. The paper explored the increasing role of technology in manufacturing as well as the pivot from “vocational education” to “career and technical education.” Fast forward several years and those discussions have expanded to include the need to cultivate a skilled workforce who can design, deploy, and maintain advanced communications networks. While the scope of the challenge faced by the broadband industry may be eye-opening, the root cause of increased demand should not surprise anyone.
In 2022, 38 percent of all video viewing was via streaming. This represented a significant increase from the prior year in which 28 percent of video consumption was through streaming services. A NASDAQ representative commented today that overall tech transformations that usually enjoy a four-to-six-year cycle in regular markets started and finished in just 18 months since the COVID pandemic. This of course leads to greater demand for broadband, as well as greater demand for the workers who enable those networks. The outcomes do not simply reflect a digital transformation, but an overall behavioral change. And whatever it is, or was, or will become, will require connectivity.
And that connectivity is measured not merely in the speed and capability that is wired into a house but can be viewed from perspective of all the devices and applications that are connected. Nielsen, the data analytics and ratings powerhouse, notes the need to measure user habits across all of their screens. Ratings no longer reflect what’s playing on the console TV; it’s your phone, your tablet, and your desktop.
Of course, and as we alluded to yesterday, the benefits of technology come with risks. Connectivity is rightfully supporting more than video viewing habits. Online banking and telehealth and dating apps are fabulous but each invite privacy concerns. Cloud computing enables more efficient business operations, but they must be secured to prevent malicious hacks. Technology can be a pathway toward solving problems but can also be a breeding ground for new ones if not managed properly.
None of this, however, should be taken to delay advancement. If anything, it compels broader advancement that includes more attention to security at every step. As the scope of applications increase, more measurement is needed to determine long-term strategies and how brands will fit into the long-term environment. This focus may seem easier for broadband providers because their product is precisely the one that will underlie so many others, but the broadband industry, as well, will gain from their ongoing review of tech developments – both those that are consumer driven and those that emerge to drive consumer trends.
Increases in bandwidth and computing power will power market inclinations. Those will inform the need to adapt, imagine, and envision everything from how broadband-enabled tech will affect so many aspects of daily living to who will be the workforce to not only deploy the underlying networks but to develop the applications and hardware that run atop them.
Tomorrow: CES dives into ag tech, gaming, and senior healthcare. Stay tuned as the conference expands from panel discussions to tech demos.