Media Center Adoption Curve illustrates different stages of adoption curve how people get familiar with the technology products such as Apple’s iPod Touch.
This article takes a more theoretical yet practical approach in illustrating how adopting iPod Touch could be a way to enhance your media experience by e.g. Playing Spotify in your living room. The technology adoption s-curve is often used to illustrate how new technologies penetrates into the mass markets. However, it can also be used to illustrate how different people discovers new ways of using the same product.
As a case example let’s look at the adoption s-curve. When first generation iPod Touch was introduced to markets at relative high price, mostly early adopters purchased the product. Most people did not see the value of an expensive portable music player with a touchscreen.
After a while Apple introduced the App Store around the same time with a second generation which brought more and more content and apps available, so the value of iPod Touch increased. Soon we started to see more and more friends talking about it. After the prices were cut as Apple’s production costs went down – the product crossed the chasm becoming a mainstream product.
With this example in mind, let’s explore how you can advance in the media center adoption curve to experience completely new media experience in your digital living room.
Awareness
Hears about it, does nothing
The majority of the people start to be aware of the iPhone and you might already know about its lighter cousin iPod Touch. You learn that this product exist but are not currently aware of it and what it can do. You will become aware of it through a friend or an advertisement. However, you might probably forget this product relative soon as it does not feel that interesting or seems to be too expensive to your current situation.
Interest
Hears about it, observes and looks into it
After becoming aware of the gadget, the second stage is to seek more information about it. You might visit the local electronic store and hold the shiny product in your hands. You might search reviews or information about the product using Google or other search engines in the internet. After reading articles such as how to use iPod Touch with HDTV you start to get interested in the other applications of the device.
Trial use
Hears about it and gives it a try
Eventually after you are educated enough you might purchase the product and start casually using it as a media player. You start downloading and purchasing more and more apps and you start to discover new ways of using it. After synchronizing a few movies and TV shows you start to wonder if it would make sense to connect the iPod to your TV to enjoy movies in the living room. You might read articles such as top 10 ways of using iPod Touch to learn more ways how to use your iPod Touch.
Adoption
Continues using it after giving a try
After casually using the iDevice as a media player, you realize that using it as a media player together with your HDTV allows you to enjoy movies in the living room. You are fully familiar by now how to convert media files and synchronize media to the iPod. You know how to stream online content such as YouTube, Joost or TVKaista (online personal video recorder service) directly to your iPod and enjoy watching them on the big TV screen.
Extension
After adoption extends media center capabilities
Now, you are ready to move forward to have a fully capable media center PC in your living room. Home Theater PC (HTPC) will allow you to extend the existing media playing capabilities into various activities such as browsing the RSS news feeds while listening to the music. At this stage you have probably already found new ways in extending the media experience to other devices and rooms. E.g. your kedia player is playing media files from your external network hard drive sharing the files with the HTPC connected to the HDTV. Furthermore, you are seeking ways of distributing music to other devices such as DLNA capable A/V receiver or active speakers in the other rooms.
As a summary, this article gave an example how you can move along the media center adoption curve with a familiar case of Apple’s product.
Media center adoption involves the following steps: awareness, interest, trial use, adoption, extension. After becoming familiar what HTPC is, you will become interested and seek for more information about it. You might purchase a PS3 or connect your laptop to TV for a trial use and get excited about it.
When your whole family becomes familiar and using your media center, you will start to seek ways of extending your media center into the new dimensions to enhance your media experience.
If interested, continue reading my ebook about what HTPC media center can do for you.