Deflationary Business Models

I was interested to read a story about deflation in Japanese coffee dispensers in the FT http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d0bad846-ed91-11de-ba12-00144feab49a.html. This made me think about the tremendous amount of capacity overbuild in Western economics on the back of artificially low interest rates, and the concomitant excess in capacity. Would that not tend to suggest that we should also be seeing some interesting deflationary dynamics? What is novel is that unlike the deflation in goods that we have experienced in the past years - enabled by cheap Chinese imports - the new deflation might come in the form of services, which have for the most part resisted such tendencies. Some of the groups that have captured on this trend include players such as Groupon.com - who just snagged $30M from Accel and is based in Chicago, and Buywithme.com, which is based in Boston.

Mary Meeker has spoken

Following on her initial shot across the bows a few months ago, Meeker and team from Morgan Stanley have come out with the definitive bible on the Mobile Internet. The blogosphere has responded in kind, see a few samples below. I was fortunate to have a plane ride long enough to be able to digest all 500+ pages last week and I fundamentally buy what she is selling. Some of it is repetitive, and known territory but there is also some original thinking around the convergence of mobile and social media (not that this convergence has not been predicted for some time, but a case around how it might happen). I think this all reinforces some of the themes around which this blog is anchored


Mobile Internet Could Surpass Desktop, Says Morgan Stanley ... - 4:38pm
5 days ago - By Contributor Wireless and Mobile News on December 17, 2009 12:04 PM. morgainstanley.jpg Morgan Stanley has release “The Mobile Internet Report.” ...www.wirelessandmobilenews.com/.../mobile_internet_could_surpass_desktop_says_morgan_stanley.html - Cached
Morgan Stanley sees bright future for mobile Web, credits Apple ...
6 days ago - In a nutshell, the mobile Internet is the future - and Morgan Stanley sees it ... (such as video / audio streaming) will stress carrier wireless networks. ...blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=28637 - Cached
Morgan Stanley: Mobile web to overtake desktop in five years ...
5 days ago - Cox's Bye dishes on LTE, 700 MHz and bundling wireless ... Morgan Stanley's 424-page Mobile Internet Report contends the mobile web cycle is just beginning, ...www.fiercemobilecontent.com/.../morgan-stanley.../2009-12-17 - Cached
VoIP Watch: Morgan Stanley's Mobile Internet Report
2 days ago - The latest edition of the the annual Mobile Internet Report, from Morgan Stanley, is a must read if you make a living in mobile. ...andyabramson.blogs.com/.../morgan-stanleys-mobile-internet-report.html - Cached
Mobile VoIP - Morgan Stanley Report Examines Impact of Mobile Internet
5 hours ago - Morgan Stanley's recently released 'Mobile Internet Report' is an extensive look at the impact of the swiftly ... TMCnet Industries Site. 4G Wireless/WiMAX ...mobile-voip.tmcnet.com/.../71488-morgan-stanley-report-examines-impact-mobile-internet.htm
Morgan Stanley Releases Mobile Internet Report - Cell Phone Digest