Do appliances threaten Internet innovation?

The world is evolving from one in which almost all access to the Internet comes through personal computers, to one in which so-called Internet appliances are expected to make up a growing share of end user equipment. Focusing on consumer-oriented appliances, we consider whether this shift has implications for the pace of Internet innovation. We conclude that given the starting point of the current Internet, certain of the proposed business models for Internet appliances are not likely to be viable, and this very fact protects the Internet´s characteristically rapid pace of innovation