Mobile Phones Replacing Cars In Our Culture
from the cheaper,-too dept
The Economist has noticed that mobile phones are rapidly replacing automobiles in our culture. People used to be defined by their cars, but now young people today are focused on customizing, personalizing and displaying their mobile phones as a proxy for who they are. Phones represent independence and mobility for teenagers today the way cars did in past generations. Also, as the article points out - they're fashion items where people feel compelled to buy new ones sooner than is probably necessary. Both have advanced well beyond just being a better version of what they came out of. Cars aren't just horseless buggies any more, and mobile phones are a lot more than just a phone that's mobile. Industry wise, there are similarities as well. Handset makers build different phones off a few basic platforms and try to segment the market with their different offerings. And, in both cases established American and European handset makers are starting to experience competition from cheaper Asian firms.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
