Forward Looking

We bring up items like YouTube and Myspace as poster children of the Web 2.0 “movement.” Yes? No? I think it’s safe to say so. But the push to further technological advances to bring us closer together doesn’t stop at everyman’s creation of graphic-saturated profiles or uploading stuff that one would rather get exposed to millions in an online community than get a crack at the $10,000 prize on the timeless US-based television series, AFV. It’s reaching… well, a lot further. Perhaps so much so, and so quickly, that we’re slowly losing grip on what we once thought Web 2.0 to be.

Some say that Web 2.0 is anything you or I want it to be. Is that too chaotic to get your head around? Is it even true? I think not, and I genuinely hope that doesn’t appear to be too amalgamous a statement, either. Because regardless of whether Web 2.0 expands exponentially over the next few years, as it has over the last few years, the main intention of its backers is to make us feel less isolated while stationed before our LCDs and beholden to the miracles these microprocessors of ours allow happen. So far, they’ve played their parts exceptionally well.

Two of 2007’s most hyped technology-oriented conventions – CES and Macworld– just recently came to a close. I actually find it somewhat humorous that the promoters of either have insisted on reserving great halls in the cities of San Francisco and Las Vegas during the same week year after year. It’s as if they wish to instigate a war where there is none. Both are intrinsically isolated in theme and motive from one another, despite Apple’s intention to expand their consumer-targeted product lineup. Take a good look at the wealth of developer booths reserved on Moscone Center’s floor space, and you’ll see it isn’t all about the iPod and Microsoft-bashing. Any jabs are noticeably lighthearted. They’re thrown from both sides of the global tech arena, but they know quite well that they rely on one another to garner revenue and increased attention. But this overblown misconception isn’t what I want to highlight. I want to know what this year’s circuitry and software blitz means for Profy’s specialty.

The biggest news relevant to our kind as of late has, quite frankly, little to do with any brick-and-mortar-based convention. Yes, one could very well tie in the announcement of a partnership between iTunes and the Sundance Film Festival to distribute roughly half (hopefully the better half) of the 71 shorts and documentaries to be shown later this month in Utah, USA, as more favorable to Apple, Inc as Macworld comes to a close than its competitors, also packing away their belongings, in Vegas (Amazon Unbox, CinemaNow, etc.). But couple this effort with the Apple TV media channel slated to land on doorsteps sometime in February, which the company highlights as quite capable of wireless HD streaming, and, granted that you have big enough tubes capable of pulling several gigs of ones and zeroes in relatively short pockets of time, you’ll have your home entertainment center stamped with a Web 2.0 seal of approval. Or something like that.

Okay, I did predict that we’d be seeing greater distribution of delightful footage that would ordinarily be reserved solely for attendees of art houses the world over. But this is good news for all of us. More choice is rarely a bad thing, no? And I do truly believe that rather than having to dish out US$10-15 for a feature film when you don’t wish to settle for the evening’s lineup of sitcoms or the abundance of CSI blasted across the cable and satellite networks, you’ll happily pay a couple of dollars to enjoy a short, original slice of independent filmmaking instead. Of course, those moments may not always spring forth, but if you can consume premium content without paying an exorbitant fee to get those few items you really do want to see, a la carte won’t remain a stranger to your leisure time.

So what else has the first half of January do we get to look forward to experiencing first hand? Big televisions. Bigger televisions. Some high-end phones. Someone apparently “reinvented the phone.” Did you hear about that? Yeah, I think we all heard a little too much of that thing. Not to worry. I’ll keep from offering my own spiel on it. Like many others, we’ll get to know its true nature when we’ve got our own fingers on it. But is there anything truly amazing that we can play with now?

As far as Web 2.0 is concerned, I’m afraid I haven’t gotten wind of anything significant out of the abundance of booths, demonstrations. Microsoft failed to create a stir, again. Apple failed to deliver one scrap of software-related news. And any noise from third parties has simply been smothered by tech industry’s biggest players. So how am I going to give you any glimmer of hope that Web 2.0 is still as strong and profound a presence as it seemed to be when closing out 2006? Perhaps SF Beta will turn out the wealth of goodies you’ve been wantin’, needin’, desirin’. Just hold on a little longer.

One assuring sign is that it appears just about everyone is now using one package, program, or web app that stands out as a gem of current sophistication. People have been Digging the hell out of stories over the past week. We’re talking more than ever. The world has collectively embraced digital downloads with 2 billion tunes downloaded from Apple’s servers thus far. We’re looking forward to high-speed mobile access like we’ve never seen, and developers are downright giddy to see what they can come up with to move the wealth of productivity, communication, and organization tools they’ve designed for the desktop and our favorite browsers to handheld devices. By year’s end, compromise might simply be a term we no longer associate with the way we network.

Call this a puff piece, or a long letter of hope if you will, but the way I see it, we have a lot more to see. And like they say, the hardware does come before the software, so let’s see where our industry is by mid-summer. Yes, the wait is an agonizing compromise. But it’s been worth it before. There’s no reason why we should expect this year’s turnout to be any less brilliant.