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Social networking, web 2.0

• Tim Weber
• 27 Jan 07, 01:10 PM

Now there are not that many places that can have this panel on social networks and web 2.0:
YouTube's Chad Hurley;
Microsoft founder Bill Gates;
Caterina Fake, founder of Flickr;
Nike chief executive Mark Parker;
and EU commissioner Viviane Reding.

Ok, it would take me ages to explain web 2.0, let's just say it is about internet users participating in the generation of content, and interacting with what is out there - .

But is web 2.0 more than a slogan? Is it all just hype? Is it more than an opportunity for people to embarrass themselves when they upload videos of their parties? ... to quote just a few of the questions put to the panel.

And most importantly: Will web 2.0 turn into bust 2.0?

Bill Gates asks "when was there a bust?" The net investment in the industry continues to grow, he says, the number of PCs sold has steadily grown.

He points to website engadget.com, which would never have made it on to news stands as a magazine, but is finding its audience online.

For companies web 2.0 means that they can get constant input from their customers.

Nike's Mark Parker says that "we’re getting a lot of insights,that we wouldn’t have got".
It's β€œIncredibly exciting, powerful collective intelligence”. And it is leaking into the real world, with customers designing and ordering their own sports shoes.

And as this is a business conference, it is not just about users creating their own world, it has also been noted that the interaction of web 2.0 will revolutionise advertising, because it will be highly personal and targetted.

YouTube's Chad Hurley says that what he is working on right now - and says "pre-roll" adverts (played before a clip) should not be longer than three seconds max.

And pay attention YouTubers: Chad says that they may soon share ad income with people who upload their own videos in an attempt to "support creativity".

Ms Reding says governments should stay well out of the internet, but should act to get rid of "territorialisation of internet rights". Governments should be the enablers who make the internet happen, and she said the EU would speak up for net neutrality - which would give everybody equal access to the web. That would stop internet service providers to favour the traffic from high-paying customers.

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