From the show floor at CES
LAS VEGAS -- Two things caught my attention Friday. First, there was a pervasive vibe at the show that true convergence -- that Holy Grail that we marketers have been kibitzing about for years -- may be here.
Mobile devices now have sufficient storage capacity, networking capability, high-definition displays and usable interfaces -- both keyboards and touch screen -- to enable greater access to information, gaming, multimedia content, you name it.
One almost gets the sense that you could remotely control the NORAD defense system from a 3G iPhone.
Second was an interesting development out of Hollywood regarding its new Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem, or DECE.
DECE is the entertainment industry's attempt to standardize the transfer and storage of copyrighted digital content so that it can be played anywhere on any device.
See, major studios, networks and other entertainment providers want to upset the Apple and iTunes stranglehold on the pricing and delivery of their content.
There are some big players behind DECE, including Alcatel-Lucent, Best Buy, Cisco, Comcast, Fox, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Lionsgate, Microsoft, NBC Universal, Paramount, Philips, Sony, Toshiba, VeriSign and Warner Bros.
If these players can create a rival offering for content that is as easy to use as iTunes, things could get very interesting for Apple.
What does it all mean for mobile marketing? Further validation of mobile platforms as a delivery mechanism of content, for starters.
But it may also represent a seismic shift in the mobile marketing landscape as far as cross-platform or integrated marketing is concerned.
Imagine this -- a product placement in a Sony Pictures film, with the same brand's advertising appearing on pay-per-view, DVD, Web, mobile delivery, playback on a mobile device and so on.
It could be a brave new world and the next generation of mobile marketing.