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Web 2.0 fails to produce cash
Many members of the Web 2.0 generation of internet companies have so far produced little in the way of revenue, despite bringing about some significant changes in online behavior, according to some of the entrepreneurs and financiers behind the movement.
The shortage of revenue among social networks, blogs and other "social media" sites that put user-generated content and communications at their core has persisted despite more than four years of experimentation aimed at turning such sites into money-makers. Together with the US economic downturn and a shortage of initial public offerings, the failure has damped the mood in internet start-up circles.
Yet that has not stopped a continuing round of venture capital fundraising and acquisition activity at high valuations as investors and corporate acquirers hunt for businesses capable of rising above a crowded field.
"If you look at some of the valuations, you wonder what fantasy of revenues they're based on," said Mitchell Kertzman, a partner at Silicon Valley venture capital firm Hummer Winblad.
In one sign of the continued hopes for start-ups that have yet to alight on a solid business model, several financiers expressed support for the private fundraising being undertaken by Twitter, one of Silicon Valleys' most talked-about companies. The "micro-blogging" service, whose users post messages no more than 40 characters long, has yet to find a way to make money, but its early adoption by a group of enthusiastic users is seen as a sign that it will eventually be successful.
Many members of the Web 2.0 generation of internet companies have so far produced little in the way of revenue, despite bringing about... more -
The March of the Web 2.0 Lemmings?
Mashable is a site that provides social networking news. They also have a list of new sites, some of which will probably not be around for long. Here are 13 sites they have included in that list. Mashable is a site that provides social networking news. They also have a list of new sites, some of which will probably not be around... more
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Social Networking Wars
Think social networking sites are fun and useful? See what happens when things get a little out of control for one social networker who might just be over the whole social network thing. Let the social networking wars begin! Think social networking sites are fun and useful? See what happens when things get a little out of control for one social networker wh... more
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Color Wars goes online
from: http://www.zefrank.com
colorwar 2008
ok, i promise not to let this blog devolve into a series of posts about twitter, but i think this is worth mentioning.
We used to play color wars at summer camp. Near the end of the year the entire camp would split up into colors, red, green, black, blue, etc... and compete in a series of events: tug of war, egg toss, basketball - sort of like the movie Meatballs, except all within the same camp.
During the summer we were divided into discreet units, older kids here, younger kids there, Hiawathans by the lake Tawasenthans by the ropes course, etc... But when it came time for color wars you had no idea who would be on your team. It was a release, and it was viciously fun.
So, for a while I've been thinking about how a color war might look online. How would you play tug of war, or other group games that were silly, time limited, and awesome... and more importantly how could you create teams within an already functioning environment to have that same people-mash-up effect that we did at camp.
Twitter seemed perfect. So yesterday AM I posted this tweet, this tweet, and this tweet.
And now it has gone haywire. I regret having caused a day of spam...but...
There are dozens of teams, some of which are hundreds of players deep. Many of the players don't really know what they joined or why, but for me and the wonderful coders that are working on this, it is a perfect implicit structure that can be used to start setting up the colorwar events. And beyond this, it is an idiom that can be used to create rapid affiliation and action models in the future.
hoping the first event will be ready soon...let the games begin.
from: http://www.zefrank.com colorwar 2008 ... more -
YouTube Premium? 11% Say They'd Pay, Could Yield $100m
IBM has released a survey of 2400 consumers, called the End of Advertising Survey, that found that %11 of respondents would pay a small fee to remove advertisements from their online video viewing experience. A YouTube Premium subscription option? It could make sense.
It's widely believed that the web 2.0 era marked the end of paid content and software - that advertising would now fund all future media if not online activity in general. As online advertising begins to take hold meaningfully, though, some number of people wish they could go back to the good old days of paying a small sum. IBM has released a survey of 2400 consumers, called the End of Advertising Survey, that found that %11 of respondents would pay a smal... more -
Man... Mark Zuckerberg is one rich dude!
The sale of a portion of Facebook to Microsoft makes it worth roughly $15 Billion. Making it the 5th most valuable US internet company. Smart move not selling for $1 Billion.
This is clearly a sign that things are way out of control - I mean $15 Billion is funny money for a company like this... when this wave crashes I think Microsoft is going to come off looking really stupid. Not that it matters - because they have so much cash on hand, but still how much more valuable can the site get?
Do you think this was smart deal? ... more -
BuzzWords.com radically redefines Web 2.0
Here are a few of my favorite/least favorite Web 2.0 buzzwords. What are some of yours?
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Gawking at Gawker
The lens gets flipped and it's creative class war as New York Magazine looks at the Gawker empire. Chock full of stuff like: 'Its long been known to magazine journalists that theres an audience out there thats hungry to see the grasping and vainglorious and undeservedly successful (douchebags or asshats, in Gawker parlance) put in the tumbrel and taken to their doom.' Rage, rage against the rage of the creative underclass. The lens gets flipped and it's creative class war as New York Magazine looks at the Gawker empire. Chock full of stuff like: 'Its lon... more
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