Social Media to Undergo Ch-ch-ch-changes; Virtual Reality Hits Stride

January 14, 2016

2016: The Forecast

By Ernest Worthman

January 14, 2016 — Social media is going to undergo some changes. One is that, with new apps like Periscope and Facebook live streaming apps are going to take off and the rest of the apps will follow. Real-time apps are leading to a real, live updates of our lives, of news, of “in-the-moment” happenings. And virtual reality will make its debut.

But…other changes are coming to social media that might not be as possible. There is talk that the anonymity that it has enjoyed for so long may becoming less anonymous. There are various issues behind this that are substantial and have merit. Some of which are security, privacy and accountability.

It is hard to predict exactly where this is headed so my neck stays in on this one, and if I sound a bit vague, this is one issue I am not all that confident on what is going to happen. But, without a doubt, some changes are coming. There are strong camps on both sides of the game. Of course it will continue to be the ubiquitous service it has become, but change is in the wind.

Virtual reality will hit the stride in 2016 and be one of the hottest technologies for the next few years. The 2015 holiday season whetted the consumer’s appetite and virtually sold out whatever VR and AR (augmented reality) devices were available.

Some are saying these will be the technology of 2016, but there are a couple of roadblocks that can derail this technology. One is price, and the other is performance. The VR industry will have to bite the bullet on this one and not be greedy, or it could end up put on the consumer back burner for a couple of years. On a personal note, I think it is one of the coolest things to come along in while and the systems are getting really sophisticated – some of what they offer will really blow your mind. If the industry gets it together, it just might be all that!