The Web 2.0 Blog » A.D 2007, What’s next?

A.D 2007, What’s next?

There have been some rumblings recently about the Web 2.0 and specifically, where it’s heading. So, now we’re half way through the year A.D 2007, what more can we expect this year from the Web 2.0? I think the obvious, and easy answer is, more of the same.

Of all the launches, private Beta’s and development intentions we keep on seeing, very few offer anything unique. Two of the hottest Web 2.0 apps coming up for public release this year, Mr Wong and Pownce, are variations on a theme. Social Bookmarking and Web based chat clients. Neither offer anything particularly new, or anything particularly different yet both are set to be wildly popular. So what does this tell us? Certainly, the main point to take away from this is, we haven’t quite reached perfection yet. Yes, I know that’s stating the obvious but it bares thinking about. Moving from one web application to another represents a fairly substantial amount of effort on the part of the user. So obviously people are unhappy with their current selection of web apps to the point of feeling comfortable switching. I know that personally, I’ve switched RSS reader alone 3 times in the last six months, let alone my note taking app and calendar. And I’m still not entirely happy with my choices.

Now we’ve established this fairly fundamental point, we can use it as a basis for some potential trends that you can expect to see in the next few months.

Tighter desktop integration - We are already starting to see some of this. Pownce, for example, is offering a desktop client and Adobe have been pushing their web-desktop crossover platform heavily. At the moment, it all feels very “first go”, I’ll wait till I can get a desktop, web and mobile integrated platform before I even think about it, thankyouverymuch.
More specialisation - With the saturated nature of the current web app market, the only way to go is insular. So expect to see sites that offer the same feature set as other sites, but cater to a much more specific audience. Think del.icio.us but only with cooking bookmarks, or You Tube with only horse riding videos. The simple fact is, for the really popular activities, the big players already have it covered.
Differentiation - With such a saturated market, especially with such similar services, companies are going to to try more and more absurd ways to differentiate themselves from the pack. No doubt the two most obvious ways of doing this is through branding and interface design. Stikkit went down the interface route and have made a fair go of it. So long as it drives innovation, I’m ok with it.
More ownership consolidation - If you want a microcosm of the world’s economy, take a look at web apps. The best are being snapped up by bigger companies at a startling rate. Microsoft, Google and Yahoo are all buying in instead of developing and expect to see alot more of this.
There will be a few surprises - There are still some good ideas out there and someone, somewhere is currently sitting on one. Despite the fact that the trends point to more of the same, there will still be some young upstart that breaks the mold and lands the next big thing.

I think that list really covers the things I expect to see in the near future. It’s all just evolution not revolution at the moment. One thing I am hoping for is a tail off of product launches. It stinks of the period leading up to the Web 1.0 bubble bursting. We get a highly publicised launch regularly and some startling evaluations. I’d like to see fewer, but better judged launches with some web apps that really enhance the space, and don’t just fill it.

What are your views on the immediate future of the Web 2.0?

This post was written on Tuesday, July 17th 2007 by Simon T and has been categorised under Web 2.0. The trackback URL is here or you could add a response. If you really want to you can Digg Story or add it to del.icio.us, Technorati Cosmos, Blinklist, furl or Reddit.

A.D 2007, What’s next?

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