As the information highway gains in efficiency, investment choices will proliferate. Stockbrokers, like other middlemen whose job has been merely to chaperon a transaction, will probably have to offer something beyond just purchasing securities. TheyÕll add value by being knowledgeable. Financial services companies will still thrive. The basic economics of the industry will change, but the volume of transactions will skyrocket as the information highway gives the average consumer direct access to financial markets.
Predictor: Gates, Bill
Prediction, in context:In his 1995 book “The Road Ahead,” Microsoft CEO Bill Gates writes: ÒAs the information highway gains in efficiency, investment choices will proliferate. Stockbrokers, like other middlemen whose job has been merely to chaperon a transaction, will probably have to offer something beyond just purchasing securities. TheyÕll add value by being knowledgeable. Financial services companies will still thrive. The basic economics of the industry will change, but the volume of transactions will skyrocket as the information highway gives the average consumer direct access to financial markets.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: Economic structures
Subtopic: E-commerce
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 181
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne