Web 2.0 – Present, but does it have future ?

Many people ignore the term Web2.0 thinking that its a technical term. This is one of the reasons why the future of this trend is so doubtful. Web 2.0 is actually a concept of Internet experience where the users make the content share it, rate it and watch it. What is the future and what problems does theWeb2.0 poses.

Many people ignore the term Web2.0 thinking that its a technical term. This is one of the reasons why the future of this trend is so doubtful. Web 2.0 is actually a concept of Internet experience where the users make the content share it, rate it and watch it. Web 2.0 websites are saving a lot of energy this way even though the expanses are extremely high, due to the high development costs as well as the bandwidth and storage massive requirement, not to mention the expensive advertising and promotion required to penetrate this market. However, on the other hand content costs even more and here comes the users that provide it, even though it may cost later when things will reach copyrights law suits.

The Web2.0 divided the Internet users to two groups of ages: below 35, those that have the technical capabilities (to use web2.0 sites), the time (To fool around them) and the nerves (to upload copyrighted material). And the second group is above 35, people that many of them are computer shy and even technophobic, that has no time for games and knows exactly what they want from the web.

The first group occupies the Web2.0 websites while the second stay away from them. The youngsters are still dreaming of world wide fame while the adults knows that even on line it require much more then few keystrokes.

Providing original is a massive task, it require capability, creativity, know how, and if you want it to be professional then it will be also extremely expensive. The majority of the Web2.0 websites are alive not because they have content, but because they have illegal professional content posted by the users and when it comes to video the user doesn't even bothers to remove the copyright warning when they rip of a DVD. This business ,even though has high numbers, is as fragile is the late Napster, that was demolished because of the copyright issue, and law suits started rolling (toward YouTube and the Google). Once the professional content will be out of reach, these sites will not be interesting anymore, and this massively pumped card tower will collapse within a very short period.

The Web2.0 is a trend and like all trends is causing the herd effect. The success of these websites caused hundreds of other sites to rise and complete industry was set up around development of web 2.0 sites. Users however are getting tired very fast of filling profiles everywhere and dragging their friends from one cool site to another just to have the same features and most of the time even the same graphics.

Like every trend it will subsided and only the most creative and simple systems will survive not necessarily the biggest. Web2.0 are depended on even more.

The two age groups I mentioned earlier are also producing another interesting issue. Free websites are funded by advertising, and the Web2.0 fans are not much of an attraction when it comes to advertising as they lack the financial stability the other group have and sooner or later the advertisers will start calculating the efficiency-cost relation of their advertisements.

Internet Analysts that for years counted in unique visitors and finally understood that the page views are more important will have to re-adjust and start thinking differently, and along with them Google purchase team that will stop spending fortune on short live websites only because plenty of kids are visiting them.

After the drums of wars will die out what will we have left ? Only websites that can offer value added solutions:

Youtube and Myspace both belong to Google will be reduced to ashes and will cause a huge damage to Google. Youtube will be killed by copyright claims and as it has nothing special to offer it will simply stay naked. MySpace will be demolished because of the advertisements issue when the advertiser will figure out they get exposure and nothing more as return to their money.

Veoh.com will stay there as it offers an additional downloading software. Metacafe will rule this market as it offers the users income. Informative websites will always be there as after all they have much less expanses and therefore a longer life. Websites thats does not require anything from the users such as Videowebgate will live long. Business systems like the PMBCom will live simply because it's a pure business tool and has a specific target market.

Google may come out of this Web2.0 revolution with a lot less money and its advertising system may be hurt badly.