Even though the term is inextricably linked with web3, the popular virtual worlds often referenced today are closer to web2 in operation and business models than they are to a decentralized platform. Roblox, Fortnite, World of Warcraft, Meta (formerly Facebook) Horizon Worlds, Second Life, Decentraland, are all in their own way example of an evolving metaverse. The original term was coined by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 science fiction novel, “Snow Crash.” In it, he envisioned a place where humans,…
The Rise of Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Evangelists
Have you noticed the shift in focus of the evolving digital expert? We have… The Gapingvoid team and I have collaborated on many projects over the last decade. Our work has focused on prodding executives and entrepreneurs to think differently in their approaches to digital Darwinism and disruption. Whether we’re speaking to startups about the next big thing, attempting to humanize corporate culture and innovation or exploring ways to engage audiences in more meaningful ways, art and story carry our…
Hello, It’s Nice to Meet you…Again: Your Digital Reputation Precedes You
My good friend Andy Beal just released his latest book, Repped, 30 Days to a Better Online Reputation. Late last year, he asked me to write the foreword for the book and when I heard what it was about, I was all in. Whether you realize it or not—or even wish to admit it—you already have an online reputation to protect. It doesn’t matter if you’re fresh out of college and hoping your past Facebook indiscretions don’t torpedo your career…
Social Media as the Next Web
Source: GapingVoid “The World Wide Web is the universe of network-accessible information, an embodiment of human knowledge.” – Tim Berners-Lee, Web inventor, founder, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), source For years now, we’ve talked about the evolution of Web 2.0 and an era of a more open and social web. Certainly the web has become social. As to whether or not it’s more open, well that’s for a later discussion. With our time together now, I’d like to explore the…
It’s a Small World After All: The Top Global Web Trends
Social media is a global phenomenon indeed. Certainly Facebook, Twitter, Google+, in their own way, each make the world a much smaller place. The distance between any two people is shrinking as the number of network connections continues to proliferate. I’m sure you’ve heard at one point or another, that the distance between two people in an offline world is six degrees. In a recent Facebook study for example, the average degree of separation between two people in the network…
Mobile Internet Market to Eclipse Desktop Internet
Sounds like a sensationalistic headline, but if you read Morgan Stanley‘s latest series of reports on the Mobile Internet, you’ll walk away with the same impression. Morgan Stanley’s global technology and telecom analysts documented the rapidly changing mobile Internet market to provide a framework for emerging trends and direction. To set the stage, Morgan Stanley forecasts that the mobile Internet market will be at least 2x the size of desktop Internet when comparing Internet users to mobile subscribers. According to…
The Socialization of Small Business
Social Media impacts every business, every brand, and in doing so, connects a network of distributed communities of influence, making the world a much smaller place in the process. Small businesses are in fact at an advantage in Social Media Marketing as they can focus on hyper-local activity that can offer immediate rewards or at the very least, the real-time feedback or lack thereof says everything about next steps. A recent survey conducted by Citibank offers a contrary point of…
The Predictive Web
From intent to purpose… Good friend Jeremiah Owyang recently wondered whether or not the real-time Web was fast enough to keep pace with our insatiable appetites for information and connectivity. As such, Jeremiah introduced the emergence of what he refers to as the “Intention Web.” With event planning features, like Facebook events, upcoming.org, we’re starting to see people make explicitly public remarks on what they want to do, when, and with who. Welcome plancast.com a startup by Mark Hendrickson formerly…
The Proliferation of Online Video
Source: Shutterstock Online video continues to capture the attention of producers and viewers, with the market as well as industry leaders, leading us into a more pervasive form of video entertainment, communication and education. With YouTube quickly transforming from a user-generated video network into an invaluable repository for content, the associated behavior for creating, uploading, discovering, and watching online videos is evolving. What many have yet to realize are the effects YouTube has aroused. It is where many online experiences…
Goodbye Virtual Reality, Hello Augmented Reality
Credit: Wired If you haven’t yet heard about Augmented Reality or Web Squared, allow me to make a quick introduction. This is the next iteration of the Web and also desktop and mobile applications and is indicative of the future hybrid Web and device experience. And no, it’s not called Web 3.0. Augmented Reality joins the likes of the Semantic Web, Geo-Location, Artificial Intelligence, among many other emerging technologies in what the father of Web 2.0, Tim O’Reilly, refers to…
