Summary: We are back from holiday! Happy 2018. On this second part of a two part episode we rejoin our conversation on the recap of 2017 topics as we see how they roll into 2018. Yes, some of these topics are political- but we unshackle the political headlines from the core topics. And what we see for this year.<br><br>Lifestyle Brands<br><br> * Rise and fall of Blue Apron<br> * Uber eats, Fredmyer, Amazon Fresh (and their acquisition of whole foods), et al. <br>* News and Social Media's love triangle with politics, fatigue & frustration<br> * We chatted quite a few times on the fatique of being Glued to your device- but for 2017 one last tip....how to help get out of the “echo chamber” as we call it- or Bubbles as this TED talk discusses about. <br> * TEDWomen2017 “Free yourself from your filter bubble (<a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/joan_blades_and_john_gable_free_yourself_from_your_filter_bubbles#t-544384" rel="noopener">https://www.ted.com/talks/joan_blades_and_john_gable_free_yourself_from_your_filter_bubbles#t-544384</a>)s” <br> * “Joan Blades and John Gable want you to make friends with people who vote differently than you do. A pair of political opposites, the two longtime pals know the value of engaging in honest conversations with people you don't immediately agree with. Join them as they explain how to bridge the gaps in understanding between people on opposite sides of the political spectrum -- and create opportunities for mutual listening and consideration (and, maybe, lasting friendships).”<br> * From that John Gable's AllSides engine: <a href="https://www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news" rel="noopener">https://www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news</a> <br><br>Trends that wrapped up 2017<br><br>* Cord cutting to a la carte ...right in time for the net neutrality debate again. <br> * Unshackle the topics (see 2018)<br><br>* Cryptocurrency? What?<br> * Bitcoin<br> * Ethereum<br> * Litecoin<br> * BlockChain in 2min <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r43LhSUUGTQ" rel="noopener">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r43LhSUUGTQ</a> <br> * Companies offering ICO (<a href="http://fortune.com/2017/12/13/indiegogo-initial-coin-offerings-ico-cryptocurrency/)" rel="noopener">http://fortune.com/2017/12/13/indiegogo-initial-coin-offerings-ico-cryptocurrency/)</a> : “Initial Coin Offering” <br> *Blockchain implications: TED talk "How the blockchain will radically transform the economy | Bettina Warburg" <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RplnSVTzvnU" rel="noopener">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RplnSVTzvnU</a> <br><br>Trends we see into 2018<br><br>* Net neutrality debate to continue<br> * Pay for the content you want<br> * Depending on how things pan out- up tick in illegal acquisition <br> * Streaming services making content<br> * Unshakle the topics of Net Nutrality (by way of the communicaiton of bits and 1, 0s) being treated fairly and equally. And the topic of more accessibility in rural America. <br> * “The Federal Communications Commission regulates interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. An independent U.S. government agency overseen by Congress, the Commission is the federal agency responsible for implementing and enforcing America’s communications law and regulations” .<a href="https://www.fcc.gov/about/overview" rel="noopener">https://www.fcc.gov/about/overview</a> (<a href="https://www.fcc.gov/about/overview)" rel="noopener">https://www.fcc.gov/about/overview)</a><br> * The issue that has everyone on the web talking <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/restoring-internet-freedom" rel="noopener">https://www.fcc.gov/restoring-internet-freedom</a> <br><br>* Cryptocurrency<br> * ICO or “Tokenization”
