Web 2.0

What is Web 2.0? That is the question I sought to answer at last week's Web 2.0 Conference. Yet, despite asking dozens of people that very question, I can't say that I am any closer to an answer than before I went to the conference. That said, I frankly don't think that it matters. Whether it is the case that Web 2.0 is a paradigm shift that takes advantage of open APIs, web services, folksonomies, etc. or is merely incremental advancement on existing paradigms such as user created content and increasing bandwidth is more or less irrelevant. What is relevant is the fact that large numbers of entrepreneurs are back to developing meaningful technology that makes our lives better across a vast array of use cases. That is good news for entrepreneurs and venture capitalists alike. But it is even better news for consumers and businesses, all of whom/which benefit greatly from accelerated innovation.

For those of you who are interested in hearing what a number of entrepreneurs at the Web 2.0 conference thought was the meaning of "Web 2.0," check out my latest VentureCast podcast. I can't say that the answers I got were too substantive in most cases but they were entertaining. Enjoy.

Comments

[HLM]

Of course Web 2.0 is really the faltering step to Web 3.0. As we all know, it is only at 3.0 that Microsoft gets it right. So perhaps they'll be releasing Web 3.0 next year.

[Charlie Crystle]

When a company presents to you, I'm guessing you ask what the exit strategy is. Given the unlikelihood of any venture going public (not to mention the dissuasion of SarbOx), isn't acquisition what you want? Because your limited partners want liquidity. There's no "third way" of venture capital, certainly not in the mainstream. Forget building a private, profitable company that pays healthy dividends. So if a sale is what you're looking for, why shouldn't companies talk about potential acquirers?

[joystick]

It would appear Web 2.0 is simply slang for what was previously dubbed the semantic and social web. The ability to include more than just raw information on webpages, by adding searchable and useable metadata along with application-like functions, creating an online space where information can do what it does naturally.

That wasn't meant to sound all techno-futuristic. The adaptations of XML, even simple ones like RSS, and the updated scripting combines, like AJAX, are in fact (even if slowly) changing how data moves and what browsers and networks can reliably do.

Its really pretty cool how these simple adaptations have made for a large collection of new ideas and services.

That is my take.

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