As I write this, on Friday, all eyes (or at least many of them) will be on Nutanix’s stock market debut but at least as many will be following the trials and tribulations of two stricken giants, Twitter and BlackBerry. For those outside the IT industry, California’s Nutanix might appear a rather obscure organization. The story is as old as the hills: build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door, and the world has done that, often bypassing datacentre established giants en route. But Nutanix will be particularly closely watched because tech IPOs gave been scarce recently; a big splash and many in the sector will feel that happy days are here again. BlackBerry, Research In Motion previously, was perhaps the greatest modern tech company to come out of Canada and one of the few tech companies to justify that cheerleading epithet, ‘game changing’. People interacted with their devices more because of the BlackBerry, changed their working hours, and made email their critical communications mode. But its devices have been bested in most ways by others and now the company will no longer make hardware. There is surely the chance of a software-and-services future for the company but it will never recover the tremendous position of power it once held. How quickly things change in this tech world. As for Twitter, reportedly subject to bids, the company has struggled to turn ubiquity into fat profits and growth is stalling. While BlackBerry retains the faith of loyalists and those who live by their keyboards, Twitter remains the network of the quick status update, is a rich source for breaking news and has clear differentiation compared to Facebook. Perhaps another company can unlock its undoubted potential or, a more sombre outcome, perhaps it will become another Java – a much used product that proves elusive when it comes to monetisation. Martin Veitch, IDG Connect Editorial Director |