The Future of Audio Guides

Trawling through the internet, looking for comments on Audio Guides and the future of the industry I stumbled across the below, an article written on FTJ, The Family Travel Journal. The author highlights the trend currently taking over the travel publishing industry. The likes of Lonely Planet and Rough Guides are uncertain about the future of the 1,000 page guide of Western Europe? Is this too much information to have on you at any one time and is this the best way to access the necessary information? The result has been that "these publishers are starting to sell stand-alone chapters ready for download to a PDA or other text-friendly device."

The motivational force behind this trend is the increasing demand for convenience and customization. Travelers want site-specific information that can be easily stored and discretely used in bite-sized chunks. They want and expect to have access to relevant location specific information when they want, where they want. The author goes onto explain where this market need and expectation has come from: the worldwide web, modern technology and travel. This will enable the 21st century traveler to download site-specific information from the ether onto a mobile device where he can read or listen to it as he stands in front of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

The emphasis here is on "will" - "this will enable the traveler to download...information onto a mobile device". Sadly for you those of you without a Nokia N95 or iPhone you will struggle with this bit, the ability to download audio tracks straight onto a PDA or mobile device because you are unlikely to have free internet access. Unfortunately very few cities currently provide free wifi access and the mobile networks only really afford free internet access to people traveling within their home country. So, consumers, you need to be patient and wait for mobile networks to drop international roaming tariffs and open up web access, free of charge, to everyone. Or do we?

The signs are that handset manufacturers are willing to enter the audio-information arms race. If this is this case, this could halve the time that consumers have to wait until they can download and listen to location-specific information in situ. The information would be pre-loaded onto a your handset and uploaded onto a map of the city. Then, upon visiting the city you can use the map to guide you around, learning about the sites and attractions as you go.

But the fact remains that this is not yet available to the mainstream and certainly the information is not downloadable in audio format, allowing you to really experience the city sights around you. So in the meantime we would ask that you monitor StrollOn, follow our progress and give our "Sixty Minute City" a trial when we start selling it on the website within the next couple of weeks. We are using popular technology to provide you with important and entertaining information - technology that is meant to be plugged into your ears as you move around, unlike your PDA or mobile.



In the meantime, StrollOn...

Wikipedia in you ears

Not one to shy away from warmth and sunlight, I decided to take an hour off for lunch today. I wasn't, however, set for one big picnic in the park; I was due to meet up with an old friend of the family. She's a fascinating woman, full of ideas, who has successfully set up several companies and still seeks to initiate new and occasionally absurd ventures. The point is that, although amusing company, she is open minded, observant and incisive. She is able quickly to grasp a new concept and then outline its pros and cons as she is able to see it. And she is always able to "see it". 

So when I explained to her the concept behind MP3 and iPod audioguides she was quick on uptake. Using her own experiences in travel and technology she wanted to know what it was that StrollOn was. Not what did we do, but what we were. After a tiring and longwinded explanation from my part she then clicked into action: "Oh", she blurted, "so it's like Wikipedia but in your ears". My memories of the rest of lunch fades into cheesecake and goodbyes, as from that point on I couldn't stop thinking about the idea of an "audio-wikipedia". 

Was this what we wanted to be? Was this a product that people would consider useful, amusing, intriguing and enlightening? Was this what we were and indeed, if so, what we should continue to be? And on further reflection I would be inclined to say yes, it would be good to be considered an audio-referencing tool as well as a guide; something that you can dip into whenever confronted by something that you feel needs further explanation when strolling around a city. In order to be able to dip into the guides they need to be available in short, bite-sized chapters, using simple, clear and memorable descriptions. You want to better and easier understand what is going on about you, or at least that is why I use Wikipedia. 

However, maybe you have alternative reasons for using Wikipedia - ones that aren't immediately obvious to me! Maybe you feel that the idea of audioguides is to give the user a much more in depth and detailed structured analysis of all that surrounds him/her. In each case let us know: at what level would you seek to better understand and appreciate a city such as London with an iPod at your disposal?

In the meantime, StrollOn...