On several occasions in print and during presentations I have made the observation that soon we will be able to carry all the music we have ever heard contained on a single shirt pocket size device.

Sometimes I have extended and elaborated by saying that this will then also quickly move on to all the music ever recorded, to be followed by all the movies we have seen – and so on.

The context has either been as an example of exponential change, the rate of technological advance, and/or the threat posed to old business models and industries by new devices and previously unthought-of customer activity. To be specific, the PC and the internet saw Napster become the mother of more