Chronicled at Web 2.0
I've been out at Web 2.0 and have been enjoying it on many levels. Yesterday I got into a chat with a John Koopman a San Francisco Chronicle reporter about the conference and this "Web 2.0" movement. Seems I made an impression and got quoted extensively on my views.
While I have no complaints about the selection of quotes, but one thing that has been on my mind is wondering if we've all really learned on lesson from Web 1.0. The is a lot of excitement, euphoria and venture capitalist here. The temptation of big money investments can seem quite seductive. The recent acquisitions of Weblogs Inc. and Weblogs.com for $25 million and $5 million respectively is reminiscent of those crazy days that finally and rightfully went bust.
Some successful entrepreneurs I have met such as Don MacAskill of SmugMug is already referring to this as "Bubble 2.0." I understand where he is coming from, but I am cautiously optimistic. There have been many hallways discussions to how people got burned or stories of companies with ridiculous or no real business plan and got funded. I'm also encouraged by the views of a Venture Capitalist like Fred Wilson who says "It doesn't mean we are going to stop investing. But it does mean we are going to be more careful." There are also a number of successful profitable companies espousing staying small, lean, mean and self-funded -- 37 Signals being the most visible. People are taking notice. How many will be an interesting question to ask a year or two from now.
