Photovoltaic solar energy (PV) is expected to play a key role in the future global sustainable energy system. It has demonstrated impressive developments in terms of the scale of deployment, cost reduction and performance enhancement, most visibly over the past decade. In this paper it is argued, however, that in view of actual developments in PV over the past few decades there are good reasons to adopt another approach, that does more justice to the role and potential of existing and new PV concepts and technologies.