Geek Squad founder Robert Stephens claims that journalism
start-ups need to think of getting a mobile presence first and then think of a
computer application that plays off the app, not the other way around.
Stephens told
Sustainable Journalism if he were starting Geek Squad today, it would not be providing support for
computers, it would be all about tablets and mobile devices. Stephens said that people have been talking about the
death of journalism but nothing ever actually dies. It just transforms or
expands.
He said that smartphones and tablets are going to be the
real competition as far as the delivery system. He doubts that they will be called phones much longer,
but since most people are moving their mobile device will be the one we
interact with the most.
Stephens said that if he started the Geek Squad today he
wouldn’t start a computer repair company. He would develop a mobile development
company.
“If I were to advise a company on what to build going
forward: don’t build a website. Build a mobile app or interface first, and then
build for the larger screens,” he said.