An essay written by lev Manovich (must-read: his book on The Language of the New Media) in 2000, when cellphones made their breakthrough:
"What becomes the next frontier in the evolution of media? Below I explore one scenario: that media will move from 'broadband' to macro-media. Media technologies seem typically to move in one direction: toward 'more.' More resolution, better color, better visual fidelity, more bandwidth, more immersion. Do digital media technologies simply mimic this pattern? After examining macro-media, I look at another important trajectory in media development: minimalist media or micro-media."
"Yet the history of digital media contains another kind of trajectory. While some media forms get richer, others stay purposefully 'poorer'. A more minimalist kind of media, characterized by low resolution, low fidelity, and slow speeds, is born. I call it micro-media. Despite the continuous evolution of computer and telecommunication technologies, micro-media is remarkably stable. It just keeps moving from platform to platform, from one technology to another. In fact, given the current prognosis that by 2003-2004 more users worldwide will access the Internet through cell phones than through computers, micro-media seems to be gaining more ground than ever. It will not only successfully compete with macro-media but may even overtake it in popularity."
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