Ingredients of Web 2.0 Success

Web 2.0 is a set of social, economic, and technology trends that collectively
form the basis for the next generation of the Internet—a more mature,
distinct medium characterized by user participation, openness, and
network effects.
Web 2.0 did not materialize overnight. It represents the evolution and maturation of
the Internet during the past decade. The Internet, like other new mediums, began by
mimicking those that came before, but only time and experience revealed its unique
strengths. In many ways, Web 2.0 is a rediscovery or fulfillment of what the Web was
intended to be.26
The impact of Web 2.0 is now accelerating as the network grows and becomes more
ingrained into the daily lives of individuals and organizations. Yet Web 2.0 as a label
has become part of the vernacular because it concisely conveys just enough meaning—
in particular, that we are entering a distinct new era—to become the basis for
this worldwide dialog. The definition of Web 2.0 is a starting point because, in the
end, it is the underlying patterns that are much more important than a definition.
Understanding these patterns is the key to success in Web 2.0.