Assignment 6A-dentifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Economic Trends:

Belief # 1: There is a market for synthetic lithium

I looked at Yahoo Finance and read an interesting article about the rapid increase in demand for lithium. A statement from Elon Musk made me think about the opportunity, “ In order to produce half a million cars a year ( Tesla)… we would basically need to absorb the entire world’s lithium- ion production.” The production of cars and other technology, which rely on lithium batteries, is predicted to keep increasing. This is shown from data of recent growth and evolution of technology. If Tesla ( a single entity) could use all the natural lithium available, there will be a need for an alternative or synthetic version. With any finite resource, as the resource nears depletion, an alternative must be created. The increase in creation and production of products using lithium ion batters will increase the demand. If demand is not met, major companies will either crash or having to seek an emergency alternative. This would be a B2B venture, selling lithium to companies producing batteries. I am not sure if the technology or science exists to produce a synthetic version or produce a compound that could be interchangeable with lithium. If such a product can be produced, it could still be challenging to exploit the market. This is a massive industry and very expensive venture. The scale of mass production would be massive and thus have a tremendous expense. Regulations for creating and selling the product would also be extensive.

Why: I do a lot of photo and video work, so I use lithium ion batteries in my cameras. I believe this makes me more aware of issues surrounding something I use and rely on regularly. If lithium ions were no longer accessible, a large part of my income and my husband’s would disappear. An alternative battery source would need to be created rapidly to counter act this loss. I am also reading about Elon Musk, so his name in a headline now catches my attention.

Belief # 2: Increased content creation for Netflix

Netflix is increasing in popularity and with this, they have begun to produce their own content ( movies and series). Netflix is reasonably priced, so it’s available for a diverse range of customers. It’s stocks also reflect the increase in popularity. 68% of 1500 Netflix Customers/consumers polled said they were either “extremely," or “very satisfied,” with the service. Internet technology is evolving, which makes streaming videos faster and more consistent. People want to watch their shows without the interruption of commercials or waiting till the next week for the next episode. The popularity is no doubt, a combination of these elements.

(https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-netflix-nflx-stock-again-164904454.html)

The increase in popularity means an increase in demand for new content. This opens the door to production companies and producers to create media under different regulations or protocols required by traditional networks and organizations. It means a new outlet to explore and pursue for getting a diverse range of media is now available. This will open the door for new and upcoming production companies or producers. In the television world, compared to other networks, I believe this might be a very accessible market to exploit.

Why: My husband is a professional videographer who shoots for BBC, Animal Planet, Discovery..etc, so I am aware of Netflix shooting their own shows. My knowledge of TV production is why I am aware of the increase in demand for content. If someone doesn’t work in TV or know much about Netflix, they would probably not see this opportunity.

Regulatory Trends:

Belief # Data Protection Act website updates

There is a need for people to update websites to comply with new data protection act requirements. This has been an issue in the UK ( https://www.gov.uk/data-protection). After the issues with facebook, the Uk establishes a new regulation regarding data protection. Businesses and websites are now required to add this component to their website, which requires knowledge of coding a site or hiring someone. The most likely customer will be businesses who are in need of updating their websites to meet the new standards. I think there is a definitely an opportunity, but it may not last long. Once sites are updated and meet the requirements, the opportunity will no longer exist. It will be a lot of work and opportunity to begin with, but will slowly dwindle over time, unless rules change again. It might create a need for people to continuously regulate the protection of customer data over time.

Why: I run a website that is visited by people in the UK. People are asked to sign up for a newsletter or can purchase items from our site (e-commerce). Because we are dealing with people from that region, we had to update our website and make sure to comply with the new Data Protection Act. This took time and I really did not understand a lot of it. I could have used someone to help, so I assume other people had the same need.



Belief # 4 Increased protection against cyber criminals in association with the increase in virtual currency


With the growth in popularity of virtual cash/currency, central banks are looking at converting national reserves into a digital format. (www.pwc.com). This will increase the potential of cyber crimes associated with large scale International fraud. Many countries are also considering the establishment of their own digital currency. It’s one thing if your PayPal account gets hacked, but if a nation’s reserve gets hacked, it could have a devastating impact globally. Recent cyber attacks have highlighted how powerful and intelligent hackers have become. Creating virtual reserves might make some aspects of national banking easier, but it also opens an dangerous can of worms, one which will leave nations extremely vulnerable. If regulation allows for this, there will be a huge demand for increased cyber security. Businesses and people with the skills to protect this sensitive data will be highly sought after and a niche market will definitely be created. This will be a small scale and niche market, but each contract will be a large scale and complex project. Constant surveillance and updating will be required, so the contract will be ongoing.

Why: I use PayPal and Square personally and for my business and we’ve had our account hacked. This knowledge made me think about what would happen on a larger scale. It seems very easy for people to hack into small accounts, but protection would need to be extensive and much broader for larger companies and banks. Placing a national reserve into virtual currency seems terrifying, but it seems to be the way the world is moving. New technology is changing the way we do business, so of course it is changing the way we bank. I rarely go into a bank anymore. I can 80% of my banking online and with an app. This virtual movement made me think about larger scale possibilities and the need for greater protection. If someone does not use online banking or virtual currency, they would probably not consider this belief.