2 EDITORIAL

The late 1700s marked the birth of the First Industrial Revolution . With the invention of the steam engine , industries began their transition to new manufacturing processes . And in 1870 , the world witnessed the Second Industrial Revolution — the dawn of new energy sources , as well as the Age of Science .

Instead of steam , electricity began to power factories and enabled manufacturers to start assembly lines to mass-produce goods , uplifting lives and livehoods .

Almost a century later , the Third Industrial Revolution appeared . This is being described as the Digital Age , and it is a revolution that is still making its impact .

And today , we are entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution ( 4IR ) — the fusion of technologies leading to the Internet of Things ( IoT ), Artificial Intelligence ( AI ) and new game-changers such as Blockchain technology .

Building on the digital revolution , the 4IR , as it embraces technologies such as cloud , big data analytics and AI , is set to speed up current breakthroughs and evolve at an exponential rather than a linear pace .

Going forward , the world will undeniably be changing at a rapid speed . Technologies are connecting businesses , ideas and innovations — and bringing people closer together than ever before .

IoT may soon become IoE ( Internet of Everything ).

What is clear to many in the media industry affected by digital disruptions is that this level of connectivity will definitely transform entire systems of production , management and even

governance . For example , blockchain technology while bringing certain benefits to content creators will be disintermediating current payments and traditional copyright channels . However , the technology can enhance protection against piracy , fake news and media tampering as well as incentivising content creation , publishing , content review and eventually increase content consumption .

In this current edition of APB , we also turn the spotlight on MR ( mixed reality ), the merging of both real and virtual worlds .

Technology giant Microsoft has labelled MR as “ the next evolution of human computing ”, following the opening of an MR Capture Studio in Hollywood . MR is said to be capable of creating new environments and virtualisations where physical and digital objects co-exist and interact with each other .

Undoubtedly , the race for consumers ’ attention and wallet is becoming more interesting and intense as we enter the 4IR .

More new technologies and innovations will appear on the horizon in the coming months . The key to thrive in the new millennium is not about speeding along the same track as there are several different ways to make use of each emerging technology . How ? Research , consult … or speak to an AI robot .

JOSEPHINE TAN NEWS EDITOR

September 2018 ( volume 35 issue 8 )

EDITORIAL

managing editor Shawn Liew , shawn @ editecintl . com

contributing editor ( technology ) Karl K Rossiter , karl @ editecintl . com

news editor Josephine Tan , josephine @ editecintl . com

CORRESPONDENTS n India Shirish Nadkarni , shinads @ yahoo . co . uk

n USA Mike Feazel , mfeazel @ gmail . com

PRODUCTION production editor Zuraini Ridzwan , zuraini @ editecintl . com

junior sub-editor Eva Meango , eva @ editecintl . com

senior multimedia designer Raymund Jaudian , raymund @ editecintl . com

ad / office administrator Irene Lok , irene @ editecintl . com

accounts manager Tan Hui Min , huimin @ editecintl . com

MARKETING chief marketing officer Kylie Chua , kylie @ editecintl . com

director - sales & marketing Jessie Tan , jessie @ editecintl . com

CIRCULATION & PROMOTIONS Kylie Chua , kylie @ editecintl . com

PUBLISHING publisher / editorial director Andrew Yeo , andrew @ editecintl . com

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