Blog Assignment II

While all 3 of the laws make valid points, I think that Sarnoff's Law is the one that I agree with the most. It states that "the value of a network increases with the number of people on it" and is applicable to various TV networks and radio stations. In TV and radio, the success of a program or station depends on the number of people that are tuning in. The more people that are watching or listening, the higher the value of the program. This notion lays the foundation for the way executives can determine prices for advertising, and also allows for stations and production companies to see if people like the show or not. With that being said, I think it's important to note that while Sarnoff's Law doesn't mention anything about the Internet, it definitely applies to how the web works.

People are always trying to develop the next big internet platform or the newest app for your phone, but to do so you have to create something that separates your idea from what's already out there. Facebook is an obvious example of how Sarnoff's Law works. As of October 2014, the Washington Post reports that there are over 1.35 billion people using Facebook (which is almost as much as the population of China) and CNN shared that as of last September, the social media platform was worth over $200 billion. That is a clear-cut example of Sarnoff's Law, but I think the law applies to more than just money. By value, I think Sarnoff is also referring to the interaction that happens on a site. Social Media platforms are a good example of this. Twitter and Instagram are now the go-to social networks for the younger generation as Facebook is slowly converting to a place for older people to reconnect with friends. The value of all 3 networks is high money wise, but also in interaction. And the decline of interaction from people your age is the reason why the younger generation is favoring Instagram and Twitter, and is also the reason why people moved from MySpace to Facebook a while back. Other things like Snapchat and Vine have been introduced as second tier platforms to the ones mentioned above, but both add different features that the previous didn't have, but are now trying to incorporate. It should also be noted that many apps allow for a user to link their profiles on other social media together to create an even bigger network.

I think it's hard to predict how people will be getting information in 5 years because new methods are always being developed. The internet and smartphone will be the building blocks for developers, but I would say there is just going to be faster ways to get information. It'll be interesting to see how these Apple and Samsung Watches will be received by the public because I think those have a lot of potential, but only time will tell (no pun intended).