06 Jan Entrepreneur’s Tip of the Week: Innovation is Not Enough

The New York Times today, reporting from the Consumer Electronics Show, talks about the newest exciting addition to technology: “smart” televisions. Having just shopped for a few new TVs, this is clearly all the rage. Connecting your TV to your computer or to the Internet or to all your online content services such as Netflix is finally really happening. That plus being able to turn on your TV by just saying “Xbox on” and “Xbox watch TV” in the air is just pretty darn awesome. Though TV sales are suffering as they compete with other screens (tablets, smart phones) for delivery of content.

But wait.. A few years ago wasn’t everyone betting that the next big wave would come from 3D televisions? Major networks bet on it, as did manufacturers. The technology was real and it was cool. But it flopped. ESPN recently announced it was ending its effort to develop 3D programming. Others are following in the penguin march away from too many dimensions. Why? Demand simply wasn’t there. People seem to care more about connectivity than enhancing picture quality (“ultra” HD is also coming but is still only 1% of TV sales). Who knew?

In the olden days, breakthrough innovations like quadrophonic stereo and the Sony Betamax did not succeed in the marketplace. Innovation is not enough. You need to create something that actually satisfies an unmet need in the marketplace. Turns out people listening to two stereo speakers was enough for them, four just didn’t excite them enough. And artists didn’t want to change how they recorded things. So as you develop something new and exciting, remember it has to actually matter to people!