Pi-Consulting

Three European countries lead the world in internet usage, according to new research from The Pew Charitable Trusts. Fieldwork for “Truly a World Wide Web”, conducted in early 2005, when linked with other available data, puts Sweden top of the chart with 77% of its citizens browsing the Net and/or using e-mail. Next come the Netherlands (72%) and then the UK and Canada (71%), narrowly knocking the USA into fifth place with 70%. The high figure for the Netherlands users is influenced by cheaper broadband subscription prices; the Dutch pay $20 a month, compared to a European average of $44. Computer use seems roughly even between the sexes, though French males access computers in bigger numbers than females. All countries show a marked age bias towards younger groups. American internet users are one-third more likely to be aged 65 or older than British users, who in turn are twice as likely as the French to be aged 65+. (Source: International Herald Tribune, World Advertising Research Council)

Consumption of carbonated soft drinks — sodas to you and me — is in decline in the USA. Data from industry bible Beverage Digest shows case sales falling for the first time in 20 years, slipping by 0.7% to 10 billion cases. Individual brands have fallen more sharply. Coca-Cola Classic is down 2% year-on-year, while regular Pepsi is off 3.2%. Nor are their diet equivalents exempt from the trend, with Diet Coke failing to grow significantly, and Diet Pepsi falling by 1.9% last year. The slippage in full-sugar sodas is in response to growing public fears about obesity, particularly childhood obesity. Diet soda turn-offs include changing tastes and concerns about artificial sweeteners. Overall, the downward trend is driven by consumer misgivings over health. As colas and other sodas decline, their “share of bladder” is being taken up by bottled water, sport drinks like Gatorade, and energy drinks such as Red Bull, a migration which translates to a 10%+ growth pattern for such beverages, and which some industry analysts describe as “permanent”. Morgan Stanley suggests that two-thirds of bottled water sales growth is at the expense of sodas, while other flavored drinks are benefiting from what they describe as “wandering taste buds”. PepsiCo has been diversifying with the trend, while the Coca-Cola Company vows that its carbonated soft drink business in the USA can return to growth. One of them is getting it wrong. (Source: The New York Times)

Picture John Wayne as Genghis Khan, his head encased in a spike-topped wok, and wearing baggy Mongolian trousers which stop four inches above his ankles. He claps his hands imperiously. Bring on the dancing girls! Hand gripping the pommel of his scimitar (cryptic movie symbolism, you understand), Wayne leers through narrowed eyes at Susan Hayward, who is swirling tempestuously in something diaphanous, and declaims the immortal words, “I feel this Tartar woman is for me, and my blood says: Take Her!”.

Yessir, this wonderful American movie moment really exists. Since you ask, it was in a 1950s Hollywood extravaganza called “The Conqueror”, a jewel of the movie-maker’s art which all concerned doubtless spent the rest of their lives drinking to forget. (more…)

“Your new digital camera has HOW many megapixels? You don’t say…. Yawn…”. Soon after consumers learned that digital photography is leaving film in the trashcan of history (it is now estimated that over 90% of all cameras sold are digital), the Megapixel Race got started, then seems to be ending sooner than expected. Already the industry is shifting to other areas of technological supremacy, deeming 7- and 8-megapixel cameras perfectly adequate for most purposes. New hot trends are geared to shifting consumer behavior and desires. The hot feature this year is Image Stabilization, neutralizing the effects of “SHS” (shaky hand syndrome) even when using zoom or shooting in low light. A new Kodak camera builds in wireless communication, enabling you to e-mail photos on the spot, or post them in a free Kodak website gallery. Canon is working on Blink Shot, camera software that will stop you taking a picture when the subject has his or her eyes closed. Their Smile Shot will only let you take a picture when the sitter is smiling. What consumers want, it seems, consumers get. Say Cheese! (Source: David Pogue in the New York Times)

You remember the movie. The two plucky heroines, pursued by the consequences of their profligate, kick-ass cross-America spree (they’ve blown up a tanker-load of gasoline, just to see it burn), and faced with living in a world that no longer understands them, choose instead to drive their car over the edge of the Grand Canyon, whooping triumphantly as they crash to a glorious death.

Rather like the ‘big two’ American car manufacturers, perhaps. A January cartoon in the Atlanta Journal, also titled “Thelma and Louise”, shows two grinning old maniacs driving their giant gas-guzzling SUV (sport utility vehicle) over a cliff. One of the occupants is cheerily waving a “Ford” banner, while the other brandishes his “GM” flag. (more…)