In our role as display industry consultants, we often help companies evaluate their many market options for internally-developed technology, suggesting the best areas to focus. We have taken a page from our playbook to do a little strategic planning of our own. And, given the uncertain economy we all face, such planning is always a prudent thing to do.

Chris Chinnock
Senior Analyst and Editor
for Insight Media

The first thing we did was to better define Insight Media’s position in the display industry. We want to do this in a way that clearly defines who we are, what we do best, and how we are different from other providers in the industry. So here is what we think.

Insight Media’s focus in the display industry is in the emerging technology and market segment areas. We want to become experts in areas as they come out of the R&D labs and move toward commercialization. These technologies, processes, products and markets are on the cusp of new investment and product development decisions. This is exactly the area where we want to focus, with the goal of providing technology, competitive, product, market and forecast news and intelligence.

As some of these products and technologies mature and become more mainstream our coverage of these new technologies slowly subsides. Once they reach commodity status, we stop covering the area and move onto to the next frontier.

To fulfill this mission, we need to have a staff of display experts who are very senior, who are experts in display technology, and who have experience in business, markets and competitive analysis. All of these skill sets are needed to analyze nascent market and technology opportunities. Fortunately, Insight Media has nearly a dozen and a half world-class technology experts who can fulfill this mission. The quality of this team is one of our key strengths and differentiators in the display industry — and something I am very proud to have helped assemble.

To further refine our focus, we have identified several core clusters that will be supported by a series of reports, by our news coverage and analysis, and by conferences, consulting and client services. Some of these core clusters are already well known to many of you. They include:

• 3D — From content creation, mastering, distribution and display, this cluster is supported by several reports, the 3D BizEx conference, monthly news, consulting and various activities in support of the 3D @ Home Consortium. Look for a new report on the professional uses of auto-stereoscopic displays very shortly.
• LED & Laser Projection Systems — This cluster focuses on the projection products that use LED and laser sources with the hottest category continuing to be the pico projection class of display. We expect to learn a lot on this topic at CES, so expect an update on this late winter. In addition, we have just issued a new report on the higher-lumen class of LED/Laser-based displays, which we call Ultraportables. This represents the next frontier as the output of LEDs dramatically improves and laser sources come on line. Later in the year, expect a report on the home theater opportunities for LED/laser projection. This cluster is also supported by Projection Summit, monthly news and related consulting services.
• E-Paper Displays — This segment is on the cusp of broad commercialization as e-book readers start to take off. Look for a new report on this topic in about a month, with a second report on e-paper displays to follow later. We are providing extensive coverage of this emerging segment in our newsletters each month, plus consulting in this area.
• Emerging Technologies — This fourth cluster will encompass a number of technology areas that we will investigate. Here, the focus will be more on analyzing the state of the technology, its prospects for commercialization, timing and product/market applications. This approach allows each technology area to expand and create its own cluster of products. Look for a series of new reports in this area over 2009, with a corresponding shift in monthly news coverage to support these emerging areas.

In addition, we identified several other potential cluster areas, which are in various states of development and support. We are evaluating if we have the internal experts, time and management bandwidth to support these emerging cluster areas with the detail and expertise they deserve. Such decisions are part of the strategic planning process, but if done well, improve efficiency and profitability of the firm.

We have reviewed our ideas internally and now feel comfortable with our new focused directions. We hope this will result in products and services that will be well received by the display industry and that will help readers make more
informed decisions at key turning points.

My best wishes to the entire display industry as you all weather the 2009 storm.