Technology Tempered by Economy, Restricted Spending
39 percent reported they planned to spend more. contract with Verizon. Rather than skimping Future technology may be more closely
By João-Pierre S. Ruth
Consumer electronics juggernaut Best on the device, consumers may mind their scrutinized, according to Richardson, who
Buy, based in Richfield, Minn., said its profits usage to control costs for voice, text and data expects the Barack Obama administration to
THE MAKERS OF NEW technology started to for the three months ended Nov. 29 were down consumption, Samberg said. closely review costs on pricey defense projects,
feel a pinch from the narrowing market for soft- 77 percent, to $52 million, from $228 million in Government-backed investment in inno- such as the F-22 Raptor.
ware, hardware and other services in late 2008. the year-ago period. In a statement, Brad vations, too, remained steady for Sarnoff. Skip “That is very expensive — on the order of
The spending outlook for consumer elec- Anderson, chief executive officer, said buyout Richardson, vice president of corporate busi- $361 million” per plane, he said. With such tech-
tronics tightened just before the holiday sea- packages for Best Buy’s corporate employees ness development with Sarnoff, said the com- nology-reliant projects scrutinized, Richardson
son, but federal spending on new technology and layoffs were in the works. pany continued its work on surveillance and said rebuilding and main-
in 2008 was spared cutbacks — at least, for the Still, there were bright spots. Verizon Wire- video technology through 2008. taining existing technology
moment, according to Sarnoff Corp. in Prince- less, in the Basking Ridge section of Sarnoff develops video surveillance and will become more crucial. “I
ton, which supplies technology to the military. Bernardsville, said trimmer consumer budgets data gathering software and hardware used by think you’ll see less emphasis
In spite of winning its format war with did not seem to affect the November release of the military and federal agencies to identify on new platforms and more
HD DVD technology, sluggish sales plagued the latest high-end smartphone available to its threats. The need to catch “bad guys” persisted emphasis on improving or
Blu-ray in 2008, which watched sales of the subscribers, the BlackBerry Storm, produced by in 2008, Richardson said, keeping federal invest- refurbishing the platforms
next-generation video player fall 40 percent Research In Motion. David Samberg, public ment in this arena of technology consistent. This we have.” ◆
from January to February, according to reports relations manger for Verizon, said the Storm sold year, Sarnoff completed its Acadia II project — E-mail to jpruth@njbiz.com
from The NPD Group Inc. in Port Washington, out when it debuted in November, though no an advanced chip incorporated into night vision
N.Y. Sales subsequently clawed upwards 2 per- sales figures were available. and other visual technology — for defense use,
cent in March, according to NPD, though spe- Samberg said while consumers are more he said. Production is expected in late 2009.
cific sales numbers were not released. mindful of their spending, the ubiquity of cell The future, though, seems just as uncer-
The hurting in consumer electronics was phones makes them less likely to cut back. “Will tain as it does on the consumer end.
not expected to end quickly, according to a somebody spend $500 on a BlackBerry? No, but “Many [innovations] are by no means fin-
November survey by ChangeWave Research in the Storm was priced at $199.99,” he said, quot- ished,” Richardson said. “The technology is David Samberg, Verizon Wireless public
Rockville, Md. The survey found 43 percent of ing cost for a two-year contract with Verizon. not sufficiently matured for production. We relations manager, holds the company’s
João-Pierre S. Ruth
responders nationwide expected to spend less Locking customers into contracts helps could be at risk if, suddenly, the Defense newest smartphone, the BlackBerry Storm.
on consumer electronics during this holiday Verizon and its peers pay the cost of subsidiz- Advanced Research Projects Agency’s budget Despite a halt in consumer spending, Samberg
than last year’s. Only 19 percent said they expect- ing such pricey phones. The Storm, for exam- was raided, and they lost millions of dollars said the phone has been selling briskly.
ed to spend more; in the November 2007 survey, ple, costs $599.99 without a two-year service they had earmarked for in 2009.”
Milestones
15 YEARS O
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