Direct-response advertising on the information highway will come in the form of an interactive multimedia document rather than a piece of paper. Although it wonÕt waste natural resources, there will have to be some way to make sure you donÕt get thousands of these almost-free communications a day.
Predictor: Gates, Bill
Prediction, in context:In his 1995 book “The Road Ahead,” Microsoft CEO Bill Gates writes:ÒDirect-response advertising – the junk-mail business – is in for even bigger changes. Today, a lot of it really is junk, because we cut down a lot of trees in order to mail out material, much of which is discarded unopened. Direct-response advertising on the information highway will come in the form of an interactive multimedia document rather than a piece of paper. Although it wonÕt waste natural resources, there will have to be some way to make sure you donÕt get thousands of these almost-free communications a day.Ó
Biography:Bill Gates, the most influential technology entrepreneur of the late 20th century, was the primary author of the prediction-packed 1995 book “The Road Ahead” and is the founder and CEO of Microsoft Corporation. (Entrepreneur/Business Leader.)
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Getting, Sharing Information
Subtopic: Advertising/PR
Name of publication: The Road Ahead (book)
Title, headline, chapter name: Chapter 8: Friction-Free Capitalism
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Page 173
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne