I already play bridge on an on-line system that allows the players to see who else is interested in joining a game because it has a waiting room. Players have a primitive ability to choose the way they want to appear to the other players: their sex, hairstyle, body build, etc. The first time I connected to the system, I was in a rush to keep a bridge appointment, and I didn’t spend any time setting up my electronic appearance. After my friends and I had started playing, they all began to send me messages about how I was bald and naked (from the waist up, the only part of the body it showed). Even though this system didn’t allow video or voice communication the way future systems will, the ability to send text messages to each other while we were playing made it a real blast.
The highway will not only make it easier to keep up with distant friends, it will also enable us to find new companions. Friendships formed across the network will lead naturally to getting together in person. Right now our methods for linking up with people we might like are pretty limited, but the network will change that. We will be meeting some of our new friends in different ways from the ones we use today. This alone will make life more interesting. Suppose you want to reach someone to play bridge with. The information highway will let you find cardplayers with the right skill level and availability in your neighborhood, or in other cities or nations. The idea of interactive games played by far-flung participants is hardly new. Chess players have been carrying on games by mail, one move at a time, for generations. The difference will be that applications running on the network will make it easy to find others who share similar interests and also to play together at the same pace you would face-to-face.
Another difference will be that while you are playing a game—say, bridge or Starfighter—you will be able to chat with the other players. The new DSVD modems I discussed earlier will let you use a normal phone line to carry on a voice conversation with the other players while watching the play unfold on your computer screen.
The experience of playing a friendly group game, as you do at the traditional card table, is pleasurable as much for the fellowship as for the competition. The game is more fun when you are enjoying the conversation. A number of companies are taking this multiplayer-game concept to a new level. You’ll be able to play alone, with a few friends, or with thousands of people, and it will eventually be possible to see the people you are playing with—if they choose to permit you to. It will be easy to locate an expert and watch him play or take lessons from him. On the highway, you and your friends will not only be able to gather around a game table, you’ll also be able to “meet” at a real place, such as Kensington Gardens, or in an imaginary setting. You’ll be able to play a conventional game in a remarkable location, or play a new kind of game in which exploring the virtual setting is part of the action.
Warren Buffett, who is famous for his investment savvy, is a good friend of mine. For years I kept trying to think of how to entice him to use a personal computer. I even offered to fly out and get him started. He wasn’t interested until he found out he could play bridge with friends all over the country through an on-line service. For the first six months he would come home and play for hours on end. Despite the fact that he had studiously stayed away from technology and technology investing, once he tried the computer, he was hooked. Now, many weeks Warren uses on-line services more than I do. The present system doesn’t require you to enter your true appearance, or name, age, or sex. However, it seems that most of the users are either kids or retirees—neither of which describes Warren. One feature that had to be added into the system was a limit that permits parents to restrict the amount of time (and money) their kids spend on-line.
I think on-line computer-game playing will catch on in a big way. We’ll be able to choose from a rich set of games, including all the classic board and card games as well as action adventure and role-playing games. New styles of games will be invented specifically for this medium. There will be contests with prizes awarded. From time to time, celebrities and experts will come onto the system and everyone else will be able to watch as the celebrities play, or sign up to play against them.
TV game shows will evolve to a new level when viewer feedback is added. Viewers will be able to vote and see the results immediately—sort of like the applause meter used on the live audience in old shows such as Queen for a Day. This format will also allow for prizes to be given to players. Some entrepreneurial companies, Answer TV for one, have already designed and tested systems specifically for interactive TV games, but because the system has only one application, so far it hasn’t caught on enough to make money. On the information highway, you won’t have to buy special hardware or software to interact with a television show. Imagine the future Password or Jeopardy! show that will let viewers at home participate and win either cash or credits of some sort. Shows will even be able to keep track of and reward their regular audience members by giving them special prizes or mentioning them by name if they choose to join the game.
Gambling is going to be another way to play on the highway. It’s a huge business in Las Vegas, Reno, and Atlantic City, and it nearly supports Monaco. The profits garnered by the casinos are incredible. Gamblers continue to believe that even though the odds are against them, they’re going to win. When I was in college I enjoyed playing poker. I think of poker as mostly a game of skill. Although I play blackjack sometimes when I’m in Las Vegas, the gambling games that are mostly luck don’t have a strong appeal for me. Perhaps it’s because I am so much more limited by time than money. If they had a form of gambling that would award the winners a few more hours in the day, I might be drawn in.
Advances in technology have already had an impact on gambling. One of the early uses of the telegraph and, later, ticker services was to deliver racetrack results. Satellite television broadcasts contributed to off-track betting. Slot machine designs have always tracked the progress in mechanical calculators and, more recently, computers. The information highway will have an even more significant effect on both legal and illegal gambling. We are sure to see current odds posted on servers, and e-mail as a way to make bets. Electronic currency will be used to place bets and make payoffs.
Gambling is a highly regulated business, so it’s difficult to predict what forms will be allowed on the highway. Maybe air travelers who are stuck on a plane with nothing else to do will be able to gamble with each other. Perhaps gambling games will have to provide full disclosure of the odds against you. The technology will allow people to bet on anything they choose to, and if it’s legal someone is sure to set up a service. It will be possible to bring horse races, dog races, or any other kind of live sports event into your home in real-time, so some of the excitement of the track or stadium will be made available. Many governments raise revenue with lotteries and in the future could provide plug-into electronic lotteries. The highway will make gambling far more difficult to control than it is today.
We can be sure we’ll use the highway’s unique capabilities to help us find communities of others with common interests. Today you may belong to the local ski club so you can meet other people who like to ski. You may also subscribe to Recreational Skier so you can get information about new ski products. Tomorrow you will be able to join such a community on the information highway. It will not only provide you with up-to-date information about weather conditions instantly, but will also be a way for you to stay in touch with other enthusiasts.