Speeding up on Internet 2.0

Although most people conversant with web technology will have heard of Internet 2.0, many are probably still wondering what on earth it means. Synonymous with a new era of web optimism post-dotcom slump (circa 2000), it is the collective term being applied to a crop of new websites, such as MySpace and YouTube. Due to their audiovisual content, it was feared such up-and-coming sites would be covered by updated EU broadcast legislation that would stifle their development.

Although frequently applied to the world of reality television, Andy Warhol’s prescient comment that in the future everyone would be famous for 15 minutes could more accurately be applied to sites such as YouTube, the popular video-sharing site which allows people to distribute to the world their choice of content, often featuring themselves. Such sites, say pundits, are completely changing the nature of broadcasting.

"When you think of television, you think of it going out to us. There’s a schedule and we have to sit and wait for things to come on. But YouTube allows people to broadcast what they want," says Julie Meyer, chief executive of investment firm Adriane Capital, which specialises in advising web-based businesses. "They use the web as their television to the world. It flips the whole thing over."

User-created content is already big business. YouTube itself was recently sold to Google for €1.3 billion. "The YouTube deal is a real call to all the other content companies out there to figure out what their strategy is going to be in terms of content created by users," says Meyer. "Amateurs can do it just as well. You don’t have to be a professional to create things of value. The line between amateur and professional and who determines which ranks you belong to is blurring."

As well as providing ample opportunities for profound comments on the democratic nature of the internet, Internet 2.0 is a good place for making money. So-called social networking services provided by websites offer tangible opportunities to advertisers who are now able not only to exploit connections between people, but also to target their messages more accurately to fit people’s interests and tastes.

MySpace, which allows people to create a personalised webpage with photos, music and requisite bells and whistles, provides a surprisingly simple service allowing people to collect and manage lists of friends. Aware of its massive potential for targeted advertising, News Corp tsar Rupert Murdoch bought the site for €470 million.

Some might query the real worth of MySpace - after all, what more does it offer than email, blogs or, indeed, normal websites? - but, the powerful viral effect inherent in a place where people congregate with the sole purpose of meeting and greeting puts a gleam into the average advertiser’s eye.

Regulating a platform as anarchic as the internet is a tough call. The European Commission is now preparing a communication on eContent to police sites with user- generated content that cannot be covered by broadcast legislation.

Although most people conversant with web technology will have heard of Internet 2.0, many are probably still wondering what on earth it means. Synonymous with a new era of web optimism post-dotcom slump (circa 2000), it is the collective term being applied to a crop of new websites, such as MySpace and YouTube. Due to their audiovisual content, it was feared such up-and-coming sites would be covered by updated EU broadcast legislation that would stifle their development.