The Internet Psychic

That’s what I feel like sometimes, scared to speak out in case I get it wrong.

It's been an interesting journey running a digital agency over the past nine years, to think back in 2000 when Lastminute.com floated and Boo.com crashed, people actually dismissed the internet. I remember back then oh so many businesses telling me "who needs a website", in fact I would be the first to admit that I was very embarrassed to even admit I was in the website building business in the months following the dot com crash, the internet was almost like a dirty word, a fad that had ended.

Today we proudly say at the top of our website, “We build websites!” Yes, its a bit Ronseal, but how proud we are today to claim this...a far cry from 2000 when I would rather just label Bluhalo as "new media" and do everything to avoid the words ‘internet’ or ‘web’.

Back in early 2006 we were talking about Web 2.0, almost instantly, well at least by the end of the year, there were countless claims that this was all a marketing fad? Well is it? Was it? Web democratisation is now part of internet culture.

Today, once again, I am scared of being ridiculed by talking about Web 3.0 or at least if there is a Web 3.0, what is it? What's next? One thing traditional media hasn’t had to do is stick its neck out on the line as much as technology businesses, whether its Beta or VHS; Bluray or HD-DVD; Innovators and Digital Mavens are always trying to spot the next big thing.

There is a saying in business that pioneers get scalped. Bluhalo is a settler. We are on the leading edge, not the bleeding edge...that’s not to say we aren’t right up there...

So, Maven or not, let me stake a claim as to my feelings on the next few years, how things will map out and then think about how your business will evolve to provide these sales, marketing or productivity features to your lives and customers.

The Semantic Web

Nothing new here. Tim Berners-Lee has been talking about this for many years and continues to talk regularly on the subject. Bluhalo is already microformatting its website and I read only last month that Kelkoo is too, along with many more people that see the value in getting their data into microformat.

Imagine a web where machines can read sites almost as easily as humans can read them. Picture this; you ask your machine to check your diary against the appointment diaries of all the dentists and doctors within a 10-mile radius - and it obeys. Imagine your mobile or gas bill comes in and your computer automatically compares your type of usage and identifies the best service provider for your type of use and initiates a change of provider for you... an exciting and virtually limitless prospect…

The 3D Web

We are already seeing these worlds growing daily, a 3D Web you can walk through. Without leaving your desk, you can go business networking in different regions or with different social groups or sectors. You can take a tour of South America, or you can walk through a Second Life style virtual world, surfing for data and interacting with others in 3D.

The Media-Centric Web

A web where you can find media using other media - not just keywords. You supply, say, a photo of your favorite painting and your search engines turn up hundreds of similar paintings in multiple media formats.

The Pervasive Web

A web that's everywhere. On your PC. On your mobile phone. On your clothes and jewellery. Spread throughout your home and office. Even your bedroom windows are online, checking the weather, so they know when to open and close. Nike+ is a good early example of the pervasive web, with a tablet that fits into your running shoe to track your performance. Maybe another is the internet fridge that can weigh your milk carton and know when to re-order online for you…

Browser Applications

Browser based applications are really growing in popularity and in fact one of our most read blog articles from one of team covers this subject really well click here to read more.

So what happens next? There won't be a sudden life-changing moment, but like social media there will be a change in usage trends as adoption of the new technologies grows. Then one day you will realise that it has all changed and you didn't even notice it happening. But by then, everyone is doing it and you've missed the opportunity to get ahead of your competitors. Start thinking about the future, now.

Spencer Gallagher