Let's take a look at one early example Qwiki is beginning to shape that future for us.
Qwiki is a cool search application that creates video storied productions on the fly, based on a word search.
As we move from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0, we will see that the mass of content created over the last few years and produced through social media e.g. blogging, tweeting, YouTube and photo-sharing has formed the foundations for Qwiki and other similar platforms.
Now, the next step in the Web's evolution is to agrregate it, sift it and make it relevant to our searches. This is the start of the experience economy where brands and customers form collaborative experiences.
The Web is Changing Everything - The Open Economy
Things are moving fast: technology, communications, knolwedge....despite how we talk about other technologies it is the web that crucially connects it all together. The guiding principle of the web is that it is 'open'. We are on what we call an Open Economy where these dynamics are disrupting the old business models and creating new ones. We have moved from web 1.0 to web 2.0 and in so doing produced masses of content, enabled sharing of information, developed new communities and ways to communicate and use knowledge. This system of change is rapid, emergent and is shaping economies. The Telegraph has an article highlighting the need for a new Philanthropy; the internet then is one of the key mechanisms for change.
We call this the Open Economy
- to read more about Carlota Perez and the theory of disruption and the golden age click here.Authors such as Author C Clarke and Isaac Asmimov (author of this film I, Robot) set out remarakable visions of the future some of which are becoming a reality. One common theme is the notion of artificial intelligence helping us in our day to day lives and how interact with computers for information.
We are at a point now where fact is very close to fiction. The first steps towards intelligent agents who can help us with information are taking palce. These are the web 3.0 (otherwise known as the Semantic web) technologies beginning to be viable commercially.
Tim Berners-Lee (arguably the founder and visionary for the web) had a vision for its use:
"I have a dream for the Web [in which computers] become capable of analyzing all the data on the Web - the content, links, and transactions between people and computers. A 'Semantic Web', which should make this possible, has yet to emerge, but when it does, the day-to-day mechanisms of trade, bureaucracy and our daily lives will be handled by machines talking to machines. The 'intelligent agents' people have touted for ages will finally materialize."
What of brands and business?
Brands are facing many challenges in a world where markets and media is fragmenting and customers are less influenced by ads. Many companies are suing social media recognising this is where customers are, however many attempts at engageemnt are thinly disguised broadcast communications.
So what of the future?
Our research has revealed that there are still many organisations struggling with the the implications of social media, what it means for customer engagement as well as the cultural and organisational context and application of these technologies.
However, in rapidly changing markets speed of change is crucial and so organisations are now facing tensions between change and established ways of working.
Internal integration is important and for brands that are socially integrated the viability and sustaibale future involves engaged employees. Brands need to innovate but not by simply manipulating emotions to create transacations and sales. Sustainable brands need to invest in developing their brand community and recognising the huge benefits of adding value to this long term.
What do you think?
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