Platform Choices

Empower VARs during the Sales Cycle
September 27, 2011
Tom Fedro
Challenges in the Channel
November 3, 2011

I knew of a company. I’ll keep the names to myself to protect the innocent, although in truth, there’s nothing innocent about poor decision making.  This company developed tools and accessories for the video game industry.  At first glance, it seems like a great idea.  Video gaming is a solid segment and enjoys emerging market growth with mature market stability.  The problem, and it’s still amazing to me that they didn’t see it, was that they chose to develop on a platform that was rapidly approaching obsolescence.  They had cool technology, no doubt.  Special glasses could turn a 2D game into a 3D game.  Special controllers did all sorts of things to ensure yet another teen would never leave his room.  It didn’t matter.  It was like designing a brilliant sound system that only worked with Betamax.  No amount of brilliant design was going to make that company work.

We see similar activity today, although in more than just the video game industry.  The movement to mobile computing has created a great many opportunities for companies and a great many options for consumers.  As consumers transition their entertainment and document management from desktops and laptops to phones and tablets, the desire to get on a mobile device what was once only available on an immobile system is growing.  I’m excited that Paragon is playing a role.  Our Universal File System Driver (UFSD) is now working on Acer’s Android tablets.  This essentially means that a user can play media stored on the standard Windows NTFS formatted hard drive on the Android based tablet.

It’s the kind of product I like.  It’s one that doesn’t choose between competing systems and risk the loss of one or the other.  Instead, it fills a real market need and helps bridge the gap.  With this product embedded in the Acer Ikonia Tab products, all of the features of NTFS formatting are available to the end user.  The bottom line, the product doesn’t risk making the error of betting on technology that nobody will keep.  Instead, it allows integration of incompatible operating technology in a way that benefits all of the parties involved.

What is your company doing that relies on technology that might not last?  What is it doing to bridge the gap between incompatible but entrenched technologies?

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