What is Web 2.0? Aaargh!

It’s amazing to me that I can still have the “What is Web 2.0?” conversation, even with people who’s business it is to know something about the web (web designers, techies, IT directors).

There is no definitive answer here (or it wouldn’t be asked), although there are characteristics that a lot of Web 2.0 businesses share.  The most important thing to remember is that “being Web 2.0” appears to be about open collaboration.

It’s not about sharing. There seems to be a misconception that if a company opens up it’s API and it’s data that there will at some point be a reciprocity just because you’ve opened up the data. That’s just not true.

Some examples might be in order here!

Collaboration is the correct term. The big companies have realised this and will often only open up the data it holds if it’s going to have some return benefit to itself.  Google Maps is a case in point, as Google realised that it could give away the maps, with an API, so long as it was branded Google. It meant that everyone had access to a mapping system for use in their application, but that everyone knew it was Google’s Mapping system. Mashups were born!  That meant that more people used the system, and built systems on top.  Google Maps became a platform and meant that it was a key collaborative component for other people’s systems.  Google is about selling advertising, and the more people that use it’s maps, the more likely it is that people are going to see their adverts.

Twitter is also a platform. It’s essentially a message queuing (MQ) system in the background and people use it to send messages to each other and to systems that use it.  You can get the data off twitter via RSS and via their API.  It integrates with mobile as well, in that you can have messages sent to your mobile. Not only that, but you can get data sent via Instant Messaging through GTalk which allows you to send info back to twitter too.  Because of all this ability to use twitter to send messages, people are beginning to twitter-up their house.  It’s not obvious where twitter makes their money, but it’s certain that if twitter disappeared, there could be problems for some web applications

There are many other web 2.0 companies and applications, including flickr which allows you to share photos with others.  It’s the platform that people use, and you can build on top of it.  But you always know it’s flickr.

I haven’t even touched on Web Services, RSS, blogging, podcasting, User Generated Content (UGC), virtual worlds etc.  There are many different web 2.0 technologies that facilitate collaboration.  It’s important to note that the companies using these technologies are in business for a reason, to make money somewhere, somehow.  They have realised the importance of these technologies for creating collaborations, but their aim is to increase value for their business.  It’s not enough just to blog or create a system for UGC to be called “web 2.0”.

So the answer to “What is Web 2.0?” is open collaboration. The technology is not the important part of it.