Thinkcorps

Sure, big boys like Sony are gonna keep ruling the roost, but given the nature of the biz, I think you gotta start looking beyond the obvious suspects to new, more innovative manufacturers. The stuff coming out of Southeast Asia from all manner of manufacturers is pretty amazing. (Apex, Aiptek, Sampo)

The reason is simple – most manufacturing is outsourced these days. These no-name (to US consumers) Korean, Singaporean companies are making tons of products and components for traditional big name manufacturers. You didn’t know this because there was a nice stratification between those companies with international marketing expertise and those without. But today, there’s English-speakers in every country, Internet and Web pages in every country, and easy distribution. (Thank you, Ebay)

I imagine all these SEAsian manufacturers hanging out together, sharing info, and building new products – not via marketing reports – but via conversations over dinners, drinks, golf, steams, etc. on what new chips & components are coming down the pipeline. They’re doing everyone’s work, so it’s natural that they have access to much information first.

And since things are digital, cheap, and available, I can imagine these no-names taking huge portions of low-end market share in digital cameras, DVD players, cell phones, etc. Look around, it’s already happening. So what’s left for the big boys? I’m not sure. I think they have brand, they can do higher-end products that are better realized, and they can do integrated systems (though again, not low-end). Anything where analog quality is important (camera lenses, speakers, etc.).

There’s a great deal of leveling that’s going to be happening soon. And don’t think any of these companies give a sh*t about Hollywood either. If consumers want it, they will build it. Heck, if they think consumer might want it, they’ll build it. It’s gonna be fun, in any case.

So, my thought for the day is that someone should build up a database of all these companies, kind of a no-name shopping guide – i bet there’s one around somewhere, I just haven’t found it yet.