I guess this is the evolution of language. In 2000 it was e this and e-that. Now it's i-this and i-that, thanks Apple and the irrepressible iPhone. I'm getting the fever too.
Not only have I written two articles already about it (see FMC & iPhone and i-mpressions inside), but I'm finding a fresh new view every now and then too. Paul Kedrosky, of the Wall Street Journal writes [subscription required] in one of the 30-odd articles in the WSJ online referencing iPhone today (June 29):
The Apple iPhone is set to be released today at 6 p.m., and I feel like I already have one.
Nice job Paul. I know that feeling. I have no plans to own one (yet), because I just bought a new cell phone 2 weeks ago, and signed up to God knows long many years of indenture to get the phone for $30. Yet, I feel that I know all the intricacies of the platform without even touching one.
Sort of how I felt about the first time I saw a Mac.
Kedrosky rightly attributes the hype effect not to Jobs, not to relentless advertising, but to two factors:
First, people hate their cell phones. But in addition to hating their phones, people hate their cell phone carriers.
That makes it 3 for 3. Thanks Paul! This is suction marketing. Because the value of what is available today is so low and controlled, the iPhone will suck the value requirements up, raising the bar (no pun intended) for all players.
A decade ago, when the cable-DSL wars were being rumored about, the best pundits at the time made a similar analysis to declare that the phone companies are likely to win the telco-cableco war. Reasoning? People hate their phone companies, but they hate their cable companies more.
