The Economist, imho, has never been a great place to read about Internet trends ...

drcode · on Jan 20, 2014

I still give the Economist huge credit for releasing this cover image in 2005: http://www.tradersnarrative.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/a...

That was arguably the most unambiguous and accurate prediction on the cover of a magazine, ever.

I remember the lady next to me on an airplane telling me she was just getting heavily into a house flipping business. I happened to have that issue of the Economist with me to read on the plane. I showed her the cover and said "But what about this?"

(I wonder what happened to her business...)

nkoren · on Jan 20, 2014

That cover story is what caused me to pivot my career away from architecture, as it was clear that architects would be absolutely hammered by the inevitable crash. (And they were; architecture as a whole suffered more job losses than any other industry). By the time the crash was bottoming out, I had a brand-new degree and job in the driverless vehicle industry.

So, yes, it pays to read The Economist closely.

OoTLink · on Jan 20, 2014

I'll soon have a degree in Computer Engineering. You guys hiring? :)

nkoren · on Jan 21, 2014

Talking to investors at the moment. Then hopefully hiring!

frandroid · on Jan 20, 2014

Everyone with some financial literacy knew that the housing market was a bubble, the Economist wasn't exactly an oracle.

drcode · on Jan 20, 2014

Yes, many smart people saw the writing on the wall, but pretty much all other magazines had covers like this at that time: http://www.tradersnarrative.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/h...

r0h1n · on Jan 20, 2014

I don't doubt their 'smarts' (I've been a reader/subscriber for nearly a decade). But when it comes to Internet/e-commerce/cloud, I've rarely ever found them as cutting edge. Of course their tech special reports are always a great read, but the focus there is mostly deeper, cutting-edge science/R&D etc.