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2006 Reflections, 2007 Predictions
For the most part in 2006, the world escaped
Natures wrath, but people were far less kind to their
neighbors. 2006 is scarred not by the winds and oceans
but by political turmoil across the globe. The Middle
East quagmire is the epitome of how wrong things can
go, with the war in Lebanon, infighting in Palestine,
Iran's nuclear ambitions, and Iraq's sectarian violence
the deepest scars of 2006 were self inflicted with man
being his own enemy. Of course, the Middle East is not
alone with it's own self-destruction. Genocide in Chad
and Sudan show how truly intolerant the human race really
is. North Korea's impatience and nuclear activity have
disrupted Asia. In fact, few areas of the world were
left unscathed by man's ambitions in 2006.
Again technology has brought the tragedies
of war and the personal stories of families from the
farthest corners of the earth, to the door steps of
the west. Citizen journalism and Internet propagation
has added a complex layer to the stories. The growth
of YouTube, Blogs, Podcasting and RSS have personalized
the media and given listeners and watchers a personal
connection to the reports.
Technology has not only revolutionized
news and how it is viewed, interactive technology is
shaping the news. Wikipedia, while still a powerhouse
in the search engines has a tarnished reputation due
to relevancy issues. While persistence pays off for
some, there are hints that not all are equal in the
most popular social-wiki.
Looking back on last year's predictions,
(http://www.small-business-software.net/2005-in-review.htm
) sadly I see little has changed in the online world
of SPAM and splogs. As feared, social networks and social
bookmarking seem to be the next staging ground for spammers.
We are already beginning to see the cracks in the ever
popular Digg. The collective voice while powerful can
be manipulated, bringing into question the usefulness
of user generated content. As a result there is a strong
indication that web credibility will continue to be
an issue in 2007.
Transparency will likely continue to be
an issue in 2007, with lack of legislation and no accountability
for online journalistic integrity. Readers should not
believe everything that they read. Traditional media
will continue to struggle, creativity will prevail.
Newspapers and traditional media will need to adapt
in order to survive in 2007. We will likely see interesting
new advertising models emerge in 2007, with video ads
and sponsored podcasts taking hold as big media attempt
to amortize these new communication mediums.
The world of online advertising saw some
significant changes in 2006. Google tightened its grip
on publishers in 2006. Enforcing strict new rules for
displaying ads. While ad relevancy was critical in 2005,
website quality became part of the formula in 2006.
Google's change of heart and fall from grace with publishers
encouraged new advertising models in 2006 with two new
services PayPerPost and ReviewMe emerging. The new pay-per-post
models match bloggers and advertisers. Bloggers, or
online writers, are paid to review and write about advertiser
projects, and like all new mediums, the road was not
free of bumps and there were some transparency issues.
Both services now require that bloggers or writers disclose
that they are being paid for their comments. This new
model will likely be a winner in 2007.
As the web becomes more cluttered it is
obvious that personalized content will continue to grow,
but filtering will play an even more important role.
RSS feeds and user selected content will become more
mainstream with more and more users opting to choose
the content they receive. Companies hoping to stay competitive
online and increase communication with potential customers
will start to really understand the benefits behind
RSS.
Venture Capital money returned to the
web in 2006, and the 2.0 bubble continued to grow. While
there will continue to be mergers and acquisitions with
2.0 companies in 2007, the activity will likely slow.
The courts will likely become crowded in 2007. With
big players like Google housing content on YouTube that
is in clear violation of western copyright laws, victims
will attempt to parlay the copyright infringements into
cash in 2007.
Top 10 Winners Predicted for 2007
1. Content Filtering - Search 2.0 will be all about
filtering
2. Personalized Search and Vertical Search will be a
winner in 2007
3. Social Networks
4. RSS
5. iPod / iPhone / Video iPod / iTunes
6. Cyber Security
7. Going Green
8. PodSafe Music
9. Videocasting
10. Online Real Estate
Honorable Mentions
1. Web Services (Software as a Service)
2. Mobile Web
3. International Web
4. Local Web
5. Podcast Quality
6. Video Advertising
Top 10 Losers Predicted for 2007
1. Zune
2. Software Patents
3. Websites that Infringe on Copyrights
4. Video Conferencing
5. Social Wikis
6. Journalistic Accountability
7. YouTube in Court
8. Outsourcing
9. Personal Privacy
10. Web Legislation
More on 2007 Predictions - http://www.small-business-software.net/whats-hot-whats-not.htm
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds
and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for
NotePage http://www.notepage.net
a wireless text messaging software company.
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