If Enterprise 2.0 Fits, Buy It

Remember the web 2.0 bandwagon we discussed earlier?

According to a recent report released by Gartner, that same bandwagon is going to need its own jet in about four year's time. “The Emerging Enterprise Social Software Marketplace” projected that by 2011 “the social software market will grow from US$ 226 million in 2007 to more than US$ 707 million.”

From blogs and wikis to social software platforms; to bookmarking, communities of practice, discussion forums, expertise location and information feeds, enterprise and Web 2.0 investments are exploding.

Many think this research validates Web 2.0 technologies. If they generate revenue, they must be worth it, right?

Bear in mind that they generate revenue because people like them, use them with regularity and they seem to make social networking more effective than traditional static platforms.

Web 2.0 technologies were once seen as a threat to investors. Now they are seen as a gift, not merely because of their popularity, but also because they often promise big successes with little innovations.

Fred Wilson of Social Computing Magazine provides a compelling commentary that addresses just this: Web 2.0 “no longer requires an expensive PR firm and a portal deal to launch a new web service,” thus allowing software to be built and launched for less than ever before. This appeals not only to the user, but to the investor.

All of this is complemented by a recent report released by KPMG International that answers the question that seems to be on the tips of everyone's tongues: Is Enterprise 2.0 the future of business or merely a fad?

Evidence from the report, “Enterprise 2.0: Fad or Future? The Business Role for Social Software Platforms” suggests that Web 2.0 technologies are being used to make business more efficient and effective, asserting that “if the tools of Web 2.0 are applied to business as 'Enterprise 2.0,' they could fuel a burst of productivity.”

What some may call a burst of productivity, others may call financially lucrative. Web 2.0 technologies that are cheaper and faster to launch and easy and effective for users to implement make it all so appealing for investors to invest.

But whether businesses decide to invest in or implement Enterprise 2.0 technologies, it's important for them to see its innovation as an evolution of business and not an end point.

Regardless of whether it's a fad or the future, Web 2.0's heyday is already seeing its end. Soon we'll see the sun rise for Web 3.0. Such is the nature of innovation.

If Enterprise 2.0 Fits, Buy It

Remember the web 2.0 bandwagon we discussed earlier? \n\nAccording to a recent report released by Gartner, that same bandwagon is going to need its own jet in about four year's time. \"The Emerging Enterprise Social Software Marketplace\" projected that by 2011 \"the social software market will grow from US\$ 226 million in 2007 to more than US\$ 707 million.\"

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