It’s hard to imagine our world without the mega-power of Google and Facebook, but let’s just try for a moment. How would we connect with our friends and family? And, how would we ever get through school without all the information at our fingertips and an outlet for procrastination? Where would we go to find movie times, new restaurants and status updates?
Surely, we would not be able to survive in a world without these conveniences, so Facebook and Google must be here to stay… right? According to Eric Jackson, we should start saying our good-byes now.
But will the rise of the current mobile revolution really kill our best search and share friends? And, what exactly is Web 3.0? Before you pull out your black attire, here are a few points you should know about the on-going “Death of the Web” debate.
The End is Near
First, let’s look at the three main phases of the Internet:
- Web 1.0– Companies founded from 1994-2001 including Netscape, Yahoo, Google, Amazon AOL and eBay
- Web 2.0 (Social)- Companies founded from 2002-2009 including Facebook, LinkedIn and Groupon
- Web 3.0 (Mobile)- From 2010- present including Instagram
Jackson believes that each succeeding generation of the Internet can’t quite keep up with the changes of the next, ultimately causing its demise. Despite the billions of dollars being poured into Web 1.0’s social connection capability (think, Google+), it seems that the capacity to shift to these new social media paradigms is not there, thus giving way to Web 2.0 dominance.
Enter Web 3.0
In a nutshell, Web 3.0 is an Internet personal assistant; it connects the Internet with information rather than people (Web 2.0). For example, if you’re planning a vacation and you have a list of needs (flight, budget, date, activities, etc.) Web 3.0 theoretically will be able to take that information, access the appropriate databases, and create a whole itinerary using your specific guidelines, saving you hours of research time.
Some Internet experts believe this new wave will replace current Web, others say it will be a separate paradigm altogether. And then there are people like Jackson who claim the new mobile movement will make it impossible for Web 3.0 to even see the light of day.
According to Jackson:
“We will never have Web 3.0, because the Web’s dead”
Unsurprisingly, this statement ruffled some Internet feathers, including Jackson’s own colleague George Anders who believes Google and Facebook will outlast all the naysayers.
Viva El Internet
The new mobile movement, according to Anders, will only benefit the likes of Google, Facebook and Amazon. The principle revolution lies in the way we pay for things.
Anders believes that:
“Banking in 20 years will be profoundly different from what it is today, and the companies that Jackson decries are very likely to be the ones who win the most”
Google and Facebook, according to Anders, are so big and well heeled that they can easily snap up loads of mobile-related companies, essentially buying the innovation from the outside and connecting it to their existing generator of sales and distribution. Thus, the giants will not only easily adapt to this mobile revolution, they will be the big winners.
So, what do you think? Will we see a new wave of Web with the rise of 3.0 capabilities? Or, will the Internet be completely crushed by future mobile pioneers? I think it’s safe to say that, at least for the foreseeable future, we will continue to have a daily, resilient and healthy relationship with our good friends Google and Facebook.
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