WEB 2.0 – THE INTERNET IS DEAD, LONG LIVE THE INTERNET?

When the dot-com bubble burst in 2001 many people concluded that the web was over-hyped. But then, it’s always been the case that whenever any bubble bursts whether it’s in the economy, property or technology a shake-up always follows. The pretenders are given the bum's rush while the real success stories stay successful.

But what does it take to have a future in "Web 2.0"? Well, depending on who you listen to you’ll discover that some people decry this movement as meaningless as any other marketing buzzword while others define it as the next generation of web-based communities, hosted services and platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Digg.

However, eight years on it seems some companies and marketers haven’t taken on the lessons of 2001. Many of those buzzword-addicted startups are definitely not Web 2.0, and although they may present themselves as the real deal, they are merely skin jobs offering little more than the ‘phase one’ applications of a successful Web 2.0 operation.

The real leaders in this next generation are those companies and individuals who fully understand how to use an authentic platform to their own advantage. Within a Web 2.0 environment these particular users can cultivate a following and see whole communities grow around them. However, with such empowerment comes the responsibility, or more precisely, the necessity to be relevant at all times. What you say, where and how you say it becomes vital.

The power of Web 2.0 is its ability to link service, originality, collaboration, individual sharing and empowerment - only the sites that achieve this will be the ones that continue to develop and prosper.