What is Web 2.0?

Observations based on Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco, April 2007 and working on Web 1.0 since 1994.

Web 2.0 Buzz

First of all it is a 'buzz'. A buzz I have not experienced for over 10 years. There is energy, creative and investment money in this space.

Having recently driven around Silicon Valley recently the amount of empty office space is considerable. This will soon get filled!

What is Web 2.0?

It is NOT User Generated Content (UGC) used by everyone from the BBC & CNN (send us your news stories / videos) to the likes of YouTube and Flikr

Nor it it democratization of the web.

What it is is the next evolution of the economic cycle - a trend that has been going on since the wheel was invented.

It is about efficiency in communication and thereby making money - period.

Web 2.0 evolution

Obviously Google is the great example - why?

Because they have a business model that makes tons of money - that essentially is the only criterion.

So what is Google?

Eric Schmidt - CEO Google at Web 2.0 expo

Well it started purely as a mathematical algorithm that used everyone one else's content as a basis (UGC if you will).

It used a voting system (PageRank) based on a voting system of links from every page visited. It assumed that the links were natural and of human origin and thus valid (community voting).

It took several years to monetize and took the injection of Eric Schmitt into the company to do so.

It is continually having to modify its algorithm as people try to cheat (Spam) the search engine using techniques that are known in the industry as 'black hat'. 'White hats' are those that depend on integrity, reputation and play by the rules.

Now Google uses its AdSense program to expend its adverting reach across a wide range of affiliated websites. Using their traffic to increase its reach and revenue.

So Google is a Web 2.0 company!

Eric Schmidt described Web 2.0 as a marketing phrase at Web 2.0 Expo

What about Amazon?

Jeff Bezos CEO of Amazon at Web 2.0 Expo

Amazon.com started as an online bookstore with the strap line the worlds biggest bookstore.

Amazon has always been innovative and used their audience. Disclosure: The link about has an affiliate link in it (we were one of Amazon's earliest affiliates) - it you use it and buy we may a percentage of the sale. So Amazon have used affiliates very successfully to promote their products and services.

They have also used their customers to recommend and comment on books and the other product groups that now retail.

But this can (and is) abused. Amazon have asked their customers to TAG album. Look at this one for Kevin Federline to see that it has just become a platform for abuse.

It needs to improve validation of tagging.

Amazon is monetized through sales of products and now it is moving into webspace, warehouse space and a whole raft of other things that it can monetize.

So Amazon is a Web 2.0 company.

Is eBay a Web 2.0 company?

It owns no inventory - instead it makes money on what is listed on this auctioning company system.

Sellers are reviewed and ranked by customers so trust is established.

eBay has evolved and bought companies like PayPal;

So it now makes money further along the value chain.

So eBay is a Web 2.0 company

Is Flickr (part of Yahoo!) a Web 2.0 company?

Flickr is a great example of why Yahoo! doesn't GET it!

The product is cool and easy to use - it employs user generated content (UGC) but....

My (Flikr) account has not been reviewed yet. What does this mean?

When you open a brand new Flickr account, your photos won't show up publicly (in search results or pages that show photos tagged with something) until your account has been reviewed.

Once your account has been reviewed, you'll be able to see your "status" on Your Account page.

We have thousands of people signing up every day on Flickr, which is AWESOME! But it also means that it may take a week or two to review your new account. Please be patient! We'll get to you.

So where's the democratic review process? Yahoo! this is so Web 1.0! We have had a paid Yahoo! account since the last century; the images do not contain skin tone colours (colors). Where are the automatic filters? If you can't work it out let the audience decide. Come on guys - get out of the caves!

It is any surprise that the current news is "Yahoo shares fall 12% amid earnings disappointment"?

So Yahoo! is NOT a Web 2.0 company

What are the characteristics of a Web 2.0 company?

It is a company that is highly efficient and uses technology at the core of its business model.

It develops a system of trust in its audience / users / customers as part of the feedback loop. This works at low cost and at high speed.

It has to be careful that its trust model is now abused or compromised otherwise the whole system is at risk.

It doesn't have to sell products but has to provide a global system that is unique and patentable. It also has to be lean and fast to react to markets, users, technologies and trust. And of course be able to monetize for profit!

So what Web 2.0 NOT?

Web 2.0 is NOT Web 3.0! So what the characteristics of Web 3.0? All software tends to be in its development cycle until Version 3 is achieved. Anyone who remembers the very crude Microsoft Windows 2 operating system (does anyone?) will know that it wasn't until Windows 3 that it took off. So web 3.0 will be 'fit for purpose'.

Like the American Constitution it will fundamentally believe in "we the people". IE that the users will be the guiding force but there needs to be a set of rules and enforcement.

Will everyone play to the rules?

Who will police and enforce?