by Dana Farver

There's a quiet (r)evolution going on alongside globalization and technology advances, which could profoundly affect your business's bottom. New Web applications  that were once exclusively the tools of Net-savvy teens are finding their way into academia, government, philanthropy, and business. Ever heard of wikis, IM, or blogs? New tools like these may just capture the simplicity, creativity, and collaboration that the Web's original architects had in mind all along, at a cost that's downright cheap.       

The Internet Wave that Came Crashing Down

To understand the new Web wave that's finding its way into today's corporation, it's useful to go back to the Internet of the mid-1990s. Then, the Web was mastered by  specialists educated in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and File Transfer  Protocol (FTP). They created personal Web sites about their hobbies, family, and friends, and used hypertext links to reach out to other Web sites. It was an inexpensive, but powerful way to communicate with anyone else in the world who had a Web browser and Internet access.

As Internet infrastructure stabilized and expanded, some individuals decided to harness the Web to market products and services to customers globally. Companies like Amazon.com revolutionized the legacy bookseller business with a radically new model for Internet sales and supply-chain processes that quickly became a gold standard for other online businesses. As Internet commerce gained momentum, traditional "brick and mortar" companies like J.C. Penney and Ford realized that they, too, needed a Web presence, if not to sell directly to consumers, to provide information about the company and products, and to provide customer support.

By 2000, the first Internet age -- what Alan Greenspan has called the age of "irrational exuberance" -- was in full swing, complete with twenty-something, dot.com millionaires on the cover of Fortune magazine, and a new model of commerce that grew from a blip on the commercial radar to an ever-larger slice of the global economy.

But in 2001, the beautiful "dot.com bubble" burst. Almost overnight, Internet businesses with spectacular vision, but few business plans or profits, shuttered. Venture capitalists closed their checkbooks and bid a fast retreat from High Tech. Some pundits declared  that technology was (once again) just a commodity, like refrigerators or microwaves; Web commerce had all been a lot of hype, and the age of the Internet was over.

But, reports of the Internet's demise were  greatly exaggerated.

The Next Internet Age

In the fall of 2001, Tim O'Reilly, founder and CEO of O'Reilly Media, was trying to describe what he saw happening during the "nuclear winter" following the dot.com implosion. The irascible techies who'd engineered the first WWW iteration were quietly at it again, producing a new generation of software applications that were more collaborative, easier to use, and more easily updated and scaled to the requirements of any end user. Tools like wikis and blogs provided the means for  individuals worldwide to create together. It was quick and  easy to send an email to friends and colleagues; now, Instant Messaging  (IMing) easily enabled global communication instantly. Plone -- an open-source content management application -- provided rich functionality that was easy to use, powerful, and also, well, free. The early Web technology that had made it possible to build and "push" Web communication out to the world made way for applications like Real Simple Syndication  (RSS) that allowed individuals to "pull" information of their choice from the 'Net. The new applications were cheap, easy to use, and enabled not just Web site monologues, but Web conversations and community. The Web before the dot.com bubble was just "Web 1.0," said O'Reilly, and he dubbed the new, collaborative Web "Web 2.0."

It also became clear that Web commerce had not crept away in embarrassment. From the shake-up (and out) of online business emerged companies that were smarter, leaner, and more focused on the bottom line. Legacy corporations realized that consumers were eager for information (or, "content") and were becoming more comfortable with everything from online shopping to online banking. And, Amazon.com expanded to become a giant consumer marketplace for goods and services, even introducing features like a rating system enabling customers to share their experiences about purchases and service.

The concept of the Web site was itself changing into something more dynamic and conversational as people with common passions for a cause, a hobby, or even a product, formed Web "communities." Community members asked questions, shared information and endorsements, contributed content to the site, made suggestions about site enhancements, and worked together to make the community experience richer and more productive.

And Now for Enterprise 2.0

Web (1.0) was driven by individuals seeking inexpensive ways to communicate globally. Now, Web 2.0 is being driven by individuals using applications that enable, not only communication, but collaboration and community. Industry analyst groups such as Gartner are predicting that Web 2.0 software's simplicity and cost-effectiveness will spur employees to carry these applications with them into the corporation, creating a "bottom-up" transformation of enterprise IT.

Corporate users are turning to Instant Messaging to selectively communicate with each other in real time, and some companies are utilizing Voice Over Internet Protocol  (VOIP) to cut phone bills. Even old-fashioned radio shows are enjoying a  renaissance via "podcasting" that allows individuals to cheaply create digital recordings of interviews, dialogs, and presentations that can be offered up over the Web, downloaded into personal MP3 players, and listened to during airplane flights or over car radios on the way home from work.

Some corporate executives are even using blogs as tools to communicate with their employees, customers, and partners. Sun Microsystems's Jonathan Schwartz is on the  vanguard of this experiment in transparent communications, but other  companies like General Motors and BMC Software are following suit. Complexities and problems are inevitable with this new, open communication model, but thought leaders like Robert  Scoble are gradually developing advice and best practices to help corporations minimize missteps in utilizing this powerful, new tool.

Gradual Evolution versus Radical Revolution

Of course, even the best of best practices and the most "killer" of "killer apps" won't displace legacy, enterprise systems overnight - if at all. It's more likely that, at least initially, Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 software will exist in tandem, as complementary tools -- for example, email won't disappear, but instant messaging will be employed for more rapid and selective communication. Corporations will still have Web sites, but may gradually incorporate "community" tools like blogs, where customers can talk to each other and to the company with suggestions, kudos, and concerns. And as open-source CMS systems like Plone are upgraded and endorsed by users such as eBay, Lufthansa, and NASA/JPL, organizations will be tempted by its low cost, ease of use, and flexibility. In the end, the most likely scenario for the coming of Enterprise 2.0 will be, not a revolution, but a quiet evolution that just may change many of the relationship dynamics between customer and corporation.