The 2011 Predictions Review; How’d We Do?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

As the calendar turns over another year we like to make predictions on the Bella Buzz podcast, but that’s for a future show. On this episode we take a look back at the episode we recorded on December 29, 2010 so that we can determine how well our prognostications went for 2011.

We do this for fun, but we also try to view the process as a way to help position our activities for the coming year. Our immersion in the online space provides us with some foreshadowing that hopefully brings insight into our conversations, and ultimately can be passed along to the listeners.

Let’s run down what we expected to happen in 2011 and see how we did:

1) Cloud computing will become even more powerful.

Certainly with the announcement of iCloud deeply embedded in the latest update of Apple’s iOS, we are seeing the massive movement to content stored in the cloud.  In fact, we are beyond having apps in the cloud and using the bandwidth provided by services such as Amazon S3, we are starting to see entire businesses built around helping enterprise manage their cloud infrastructure.  Businesses including Cloudability and TwinStrata are getting significant traction.

2) Facebook will have numerous retail integrations.

Desiree recently announced a partnership with e-commerce platform provider BigCommerce, which provides high level functionality including an easy integration with Facebook.  We connected with Benjamin Trotter during the year for an appearance on The Bella Buzz to discuss his company StoreFront Social, plus we are seeing almost daily announcements regarding companies using Facebook as a platform for leveraging the social graph for commerce.  Event ticketing through Facebook could mean a significant disruption in the stranglehold Ticketmaster has had on the market.

3) There will be a growth of serious CyberCrime.

Unfortunately this was a prediction that we did not want to see come to fruition, but did in fact grow in notoriety in 2011.  Maybe the silver lining we can take from issues such as the SONY Playstation hack and the recent U.S. Chamber of Commerce breach is that elevated awareness is actually a good thing for ensuring all parties are diligent in protecting themselves.

This was also the year that we had an elevated awareness of the challenges for children online, through a consulting arrangement with What’s What.me.  The fact that children under the age of 13 are falsifying their ages in massive numbers just to participate in Facebook is staggering, and the potential hazards are scary.  Parents need to be aware of the activities of children and prevent potential outbreaks of other types of cybercrimes.

4) Many other social networks will appear.

It almost seemed impossible at the start of 2011 that we could have even MORE social networks hit the scene, but Desiree hit it right on the button.  There were many niche social networks that launched throughout the year and they have achieved enormous growth.  Activity sites such as Path, photo sharing on Instagram, content consumption on GetGlue and social music on Spotify are just a few of the networks that have risen during the year.

It seems that the successful approach is to focus on a very specific niche, and then to leverage the social graphs accumulated on Facebook or Twitter to help distribute the activity.  Look for more of this in the future.

5) Web connected TV’s will reach critical mass in 2011.

So we aren’t 100% correct, but we were not that far off on this one.  We were thinking that the hot item with all of the buzz for this holiday season was going to be a web integrated television, but it seems the tablet is this year’s top gift. However, we are seeing the groundwork being laid out for an epic battle between the traditional television business models versus internet streaming.

Here are just a few items in the news that are part of this bigger story:

The SOPA Bill supported by big media lobbies would have a harmful impact on content distribution.

Steve Jobs biography hints at a more integrated Apple TV strategy.

The Super Bowl will be streamed online for free.

Is it content or devices that come first while we move towards streaming television entertainment?  Keep an eye out for these developments!

We’re on to our predictions for 2012 on the next episode of The Bella Buzz podcast coming in January, so stay tuned!

To all of our faithful listeners and friends, from Desiree and Joe, we wish you the very Happiest of Holidays.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Theme music for The Bella Buzz is Fallen by Digital Chemistry, available for download at the Podsafe Music Network.

You can subscribe to The Bella Buzz directly from ITunes by following this link, and we would be happy to receive listener feedback and ratings at The ITunes Store.