Anybody heard anything about how that went? + Some random thoughts.
Yeah, of course I could google for myself. I will, once I have the time. Just thinking that by now -- it's been a little over two years -- at least we'll know whether it flopped immediately.
Thoughts:
1) The DRM seems sucky, but I guess they thought they had to because otherwise others would free-ride on the infrastructure they built.
2) But why do they want to build a proprietary infrastructure in the first place? OK, the tech will have to be proprietary in their model, but why do they want to (as I understood it) build and operate separate facilities, service points? If you want something on every other street corner in a large metropolitan area, wouldn't franchising into existing facilities be the way to go? Just put one of your charging / battery-swap stations into every tobacconists / nespaper agent / drugstore / copy shop / bookmaker's / McDonald's / Starbucks / whatever, that you can sign up...?
3) Which brings us back to #1: This would be a lot more attractive for the franchisees if trade in these were even more brisk. So team up with other purveyors of power-using stuff -- toolmakers like Makita / Ryobi / Stihl; camping equipment makers, to drive the heater / cooker / lights / whatevs in your boat, caravan, tent or cabin-in-the-woods; computer / tablet / phone makers, for when you're travelling far / staying in your boat/tent/cabin for a really long while ("I can run my iPad for three days straight on my [GeneriBrand] power bank!" -- "Oh yeah? I can run my Lenovo tablet for six weeks on my Gogoro battery."); all kinds of "toy or not?" mobility devices from "hoverboards" and "wonderwheels" over electro-kick-scooters to Segways; perhaps even other similar scooters from "cooperpetitors"... They'd have to either skip the DRM, or sign everyone up to the same DRM infrastructure, but so what? That's basically how everyone on the Web works with the big players in social media, so it oughta be possible here too.
4) As DrooK mentioned, this is how we all thought -- when we were younger and batteries didn't charge anywhere near as fast as they do nowadays -- that an electric car ecosystem would have to work. And why couldn't it? Having separate Tesla batteries and Ford batteries and Fiat batteries and Chrysler batteries and Mercedes batteries and Nissan batteries and Kia batteries and Jaguar batteries and... still sounds about as smart as having separate Ford fuel and Fiat fuel and Chrysler fuel and Mercedes fuel and Nissan fuel and Kia fuel and Jaguar fuel and...
Thoughts:
1) The DRM seems sucky, but I guess they thought they had to because otherwise others would free-ride on the infrastructure they built.
2) But why do they want to build a proprietary infrastructure in the first place? OK, the tech will have to be proprietary in their model, but why do they want to (as I understood it) build and operate separate facilities, service points? If you want something on every other street corner in a large metropolitan area, wouldn't franchising into existing facilities be the way to go? Just put one of your charging / battery-swap stations into every tobacconists / nespaper agent / drugstore / copy shop / bookmaker's / McDonald's / Starbucks / whatever, that you can sign up...?
3) Which brings us back to #1: This would be a lot more attractive for the franchisees if trade in these were even more brisk. So team up with other purveyors of power-using stuff -- toolmakers like Makita / Ryobi / Stihl; camping equipment makers, to drive the heater / cooker / lights / whatevs in your boat, caravan, tent or cabin-in-the-woods; computer / tablet / phone makers, for when you're travelling far / staying in your boat/tent/cabin for a really long while ("I can run my iPad for three days straight on my [GeneriBrand] power bank!" -- "Oh yeah? I can run my Lenovo tablet for six weeks on my Gogoro battery."); all kinds of "toy or not?" mobility devices from "hoverboards" and "wonderwheels" over electro-kick-scooters to Segways; perhaps even other similar scooters from "cooperpetitors"... They'd have to either skip the DRM, or sign everyone up to the same DRM infrastructure, but so what? That's basically how everyone on the Web works with the big players in social media, so it oughta be possible here too.
4) As DrooK mentioned, this is how we all thought -- when we were younger and batteries didn't charge anywhere near as fast as they do nowadays -- that an electric car ecosystem would have to work. And why couldn't it? Having separate Tesla batteries and Ford batteries and Fiat batteries and Chrysler batteries and Mercedes batteries and Nissan batteries and Kia batteries and Jaguar batteries and... still sounds about as smart as having separate Ford fuel and Fiat fuel and Chrysler fuel and Mercedes fuel and Nissan fuel and Kia fuel and Jaguar fuel and...