Since our discussion last Monday, I have not been able to get one thing that was mentioned out of my head. It was the question of whether or not this new "cyber-real estate" known as websites even the playing field for the little guy, or if this new platform for information will become a mirror of it's former physical incarnation, with Big Business equipped and eager to push us out.
Amber made a great point. The Internet used to be kind of underground, populated by the young and web-savvy. Is the Wild West being tamed by established profiteers building high-rises on our Main Street - our native soil? All right, I'm obsessed with this unoriginal real estate metaphor, but I'm rolling with it.
Let's go about this question logically...
If the Internet is the new business center, in theory, we all start out on an equal platform. There is no Beverly Hills on the Internet. There is no Torrance on the Internet. Everybody has the same "location, location, location": www.
On the other hand, it could be argued that the quality and memorability of a domain name is the new geography. Do the big boys have an advantage there? The Domain Name Rights Coalition (yes, you read that right) thinks they do.
The second thing to consider is what is built on your cyber-property. Free of the expense of "brick and mortar," can the cash-strapped entrepreneur build as effective a website as his big money competitor? I would argue "yes." Young revolutionaries (too much?) like Tim Westergen (Pandora), Shawn Fanning (Napster), andTom Anderson (MySpace) have proven it is possible. Money can't always buy innovation. Score one for the little guy/gal.
I will discuss only two more things: "Content" & "Maintaining an Open Web", so bear (bare?) with me...
As far as content, there is no doubt in my mind that small businesses can provide just as quality a product as the big boys. But can they match the breadth and quantity of sources and contributors - MAYBE! One of the great things about the Internet is that is - by nature - viral. As words spread expontentially about a site, people interested in similar things congregate, often creating a digital headquarters for experts in a given field - not compiled by a Human Resources department, but created organically through shared interests and expertise.
It is this concept of an "open Internet" that allows us, as the majority start-ups, to gain a foothold in an arena in which we would otherwise be unable to compete. This open, sharing, Semantic Web works in a way that is pretty much antithetical to the corporate mentality. But if
Blogger "Some Random Dude" is right, we may be winning the battle!
I can't pretend to wrap my head around this stuff, and I seem to have come up with more questions than answers in this post. But I think it is an interesting, relevant topic that merits more discussion..
What do you guys think?
