Gartner's annual Hype Cycle Special Report provides a detailed look at technology maturity across the IT industry. The 2009 report features 79 Hype Cycles.
Gartner's Hype Cycle characterizes the typical progression of an emerging technology, from overenthusiasm through a period of disillusionment to an eventual understanding of the technology's relevance and role in a market or domain. Each phase is characterized by distinct indicators of market, investment and adoption activities (see figure below).
Richard MacManus, writing in ReadWriteWeb, analyses the technologies along the Hype Cycle:
"According to the report, cloud computing, e-books and Internet TV are at the "Peak of Inflated Expectations," while this year's biggest hit Twitter is said to have "tipped over the peak" and is just about to enter the infamous "Trough of Disillusionment." Social software suites and other microblogging services are likewise starting their downward trend. Interestingly, web 2.0 is deemed to be nearly past the Trough and entering the "Slope of Enlightenment ... One of our current topics of interest, RFID, is stuck right at the bottom of the Trough of Disillusionment. But another RWW hot topic, Augmented Reality, is on the rise."
Take a look at these postings for more detail and for information about The Priority Matrix, a tool "for prioritizing emerging technologies by forcing technology planners to look beyond the hype and assess technology opportunities in terms of their relative impact on the enterprise and the timing of that impact".
