Ideas from the frontlines of Web 2.0
Posted by Grant Brewer on 01 Jan 2006
The internet has remained relevant since bursting on the commercial scene in the mid-nineties. The most recent evolution is driven by companies that collectively have become known as Web 2.0 companies. It is a loose definition, but exploring it provides a good understanding of the of future of internet applications and technology development.
The internet has remained relevant since bursting on the commercial scene in the mid-nineties. The most recent evolution is driven by companies that collectively have become known as Web 2.0 companies. It is a loose definition, but exploring it provides a good understanding of the of future of internet applications and technology development.
What is Web 2.0?
The influence of the internet known as Web 2.0 is more a concept than something concrete and definitions will vary between commentators. The concept originated at a conference hosted by publisher O'Reilly and is "described on their site":http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html. At first the internet was thought of as a channel to reach customers - not that different from other channels such as a call centre or print media. However, the new web has created the realisation that the web (or the network) is the platform that glues applications or services together - it is more than simply another channel. This isn't all new. Various commentators have long expected the internet to diminish our dependence on desktop computing by shifting toward the provision of services on demand over a network. Web 2.0 is this idea becoming a reality; and a profitable reality for many of the organisations involved. It isn't about the technology itself but about the services that can be provided to customers. And it is about the information that customers create, store and share. Google is the leading light of the Web 2.0 since it shows off many of the characteristics of the new web and is one of the most recognisable brands around.
Characteristics of the new web
One characteristic of Web 2.0 is it that tends to lower entry barriers, making it easier for smaller organisations to release products and win profitable customers. The relatively low costs of developing some of these applications is making the difference and the open-source movement is one of the reasons why. The other is the "long tail". The web today has what is known as a "long tail" where there are a substantial number of profitable customers to be had outside of the large enterprise customers. In the past (for example, the model that SAP and Oracle are built on), technology companies needed to win market share amongst large corporate organisations or face irrelevance and diminishing profitability. Today, the internet makes it is possible to service the smaller organisations successfully. This characteristic has been referred to as the Fortune 5,000,000 by "37 Signals":http://www.37signals.com, one of the Web 2.0 leaders.
Another characteristic is that the services of these companies tend to draw on information from other organisations and mix it up with there own. They take advantage of the open-architecture that is characteristic of the innovative internet. Frequently, they also allow the users to share their own information exaggerating the network effect that has always been a part of the internet and that launched companies such as Naptser and Kazaa. This community involvement is best demonstrated by "flickr":http://www.flickr.com, a photograph sharing web application that gets users to put their photographs on the web and share them. It has resulted in the proliferation of photograph sharing. A similar idea was coined by "del.icio.us":http://del.icio.us which encourages users to tag their information by entering keywords against their internet bookmarks and other information, all of which is stored centrally on the internet. What del.icio.us creates is a context for users to search each others information creating a community organised directory. There is no central control and the most popular items float to the top of users consciousness (read The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki to understand why this is a powerful idea). This is similar to the way that Google provides search results - it is based on common popularity and cross referencing. These self organising information taxonomies that are created by users themselves have become known as folksonomies.
"Wikipedia":http://www.wikipedia.com is amongst the foremost example of community based information that is self governed. Wikipedia is a multi-language encyclopaedia that is written by regular internet users. Anyone is free to contribute an entry either to add new information or to correct information already in the encyclopaedia
All of these companies have worked to enrich the standard web interface without relying on custom applications that need to be downloaded. "Google's email service":http://www.gmail.com gained popularity because of the large storage space provided and the innovative interface that made finding and sending email fast and intuitive. The technology to enable browsers to interact in this way has become known as "AJAX":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AJAX. It has enabled browser based applications to start acting much like desktop applications. Together with the increasing prevalence of broadband internet connections, this has enabled users to buy software services as they require and use them across the internet rather than loading applications on their own machine or server.
A great project management example is "Basecamp":http://www.basecamphq.com which provides a simple, but effective web application that is a terrific way to manage projects. The application's philosophy is that project management is more about communication than it is about scheduling. Web 2.0 companies often have a clear manifesto or philosophy - something to check their work against at every turn. Such focus makes for good strategy, especially when you are a smaller organisation competing against far larger organisations. What does it mean?
The new web intersects with other business trends, such as the integration of design and strategy exemplified by Apple. It also makes agility and adaptability an organisational strength. The integration of the network and application has been long awaited - the new web is the start of that integration becoming a reality. It will increasingly connect with our lifestyles through the integration of our personal computers, phones and entertainment. In corporate environments it is going to mean more integration and information sharing between organisations, reflected in smarter applications that simplify the user experience whilst delivering better decision making information. At the least, your organisation should be watching the trend if not participating in shaping it.
Publication Information Ideas from the frontlines of Web 2.0 was published in Intelligence Magazine as Strategym #35 in January 2006.
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