A couple of weeks ago the world's largest consumer electronics show was held in Las Vegas. There were thousands of new gadgets from high definition sets to 103" plasma screens to smart mobile phones and new services to be delivered across the web. If there's one focus point for Australians is that these new web services all demand we have a good broadband connection to the 'Net.

Take for example the decision by the BBC to digitise all its news archives and make them available from their web site. Why are they working on this project? Because it's much cheaper to deliver their TV productions over the 'Net than through the traditional channel (no pun intended) - about $30,000 compared to millions of dollars. In the same vein other major TV and video production companies are gearing to delivering their products to us through the web. This type of service can't be delivered over dialup lines nor can a broadband plan limited to a few hundered megabytes per month allow us access to our favourite TV shows.

We all like choice and online music stores offer purchase of music on track-by-track basis - no more buying a CD to get just the one or two favourite tracks we really want to listen to. The sale of music across the web is one of the big shifts in the way consumers buy products and it will increase as more providers enter the scene.

For other ideas for the year, check out Windows Live Ideas. You can try Windows Live Local (the Virtual Earth mapping service but don't bother if you've only got dialup), the Live Safety Centre for a free virus checkup of your computer, and Windows Live itself to bring together all your news feeds and gadgets (but don't add the MSNBC video gadget if you're on dialup or a limited broadband plan). The new version of Hotmail, Windows Live Mail, will be soon available for everybody - it's got spell checking as you type but webDotWiz can't see how dialup users will be able to get the benefit. Finally, the new Messenger, Windows Live Messenger, is being trialled and contacting people will include the capability of phoning them, anywhere in the world, for about three cents per minute - if you've got broadband.