Beware the walled gardens
[Johannesburg, 27 March 2013] -
The technology industry is well-known for coining its own unique phrases and expressions. From big data, to digital divide, to Web 2.0 – and all of the others in between – these phrases have often translated into common usage. While many have become obsolete as technology has evolved, some are more relevant today than when they were first coined.The term “walled garden” was created by John Malone in the mid-1990s to describe a closed technology platform or ecosystem where the carrier or service provider has control over applications, content and media, and restricts convenient access to non-approved applications or content. In today’s Web 2.0 world of access anything, anywhere and ubiquitous social networking, the walled garden should be an outdated concept, and yet it still informs the approach of many of the world’s biggest technology companies.Recent reports of the spat between Instagram and Twitter are the latest example of the pervasiveness of the walled garden attitude in the tech space, with Instagram not allowing Twitter users to view their photos on that platform any more, forcing them to leave Twitter and use Instagram. Richard Firth, CEO of MIP Holdings, points out that this approach is contrary to the demands of technology users, who have come to expect interoperability and easy access across ecosystems.
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