Web 2.0 Expo, an annual event organized by the Internet industry and dedicated to improving the worldwide web began on Tuesday at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Alan Gray of NewsBlaze is right there to bring the latest news to his readers.
In the words of the organizers, the conference, which will last through Friday, April 25, “features the most innovative and successful Internet industry figures and companies providing attendees with examples of business models, development paradigms, and design strategies to enable mainstream businesses.” In other words, San Francisco, until now known more for its love for ecology rather than for modern technology, has become the real capital of the virtual world.
Web 2.0 Expo is a rare event where computer geeks meet Wall Street businessmen and both seem to like it. To quote Janetti Chon, who appears to draw experience from the two worlds, the conference allows “a dynamic and ir-replicable gathering of amazing people from across the globe to share intelligence, collaborate on ideas and connect with like-minded thinking.” During her impressive career, she has worked for various communications companies as well as for the national giant JP Morgan Chase. Now she runs a blog on Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco.
Those who share Chon’s passion for the Internet are many. The organizers remain modest in their estimations, but the number of visitors at Moscone Center this week may exceed one thousand. Among invited are companies and individuals that already target the Internet or are planning to do so in the nearby future. The roster includes such familiar brands as Adobe Systems, IBM, Microsoft, MySpace, Nokia, Vodafone, Yahoo!, Inc., and even Walt Disney Company. The latter will give an hour-long presentation on Thursday about its latest developments like its upgraded websites Disney.com and Family.com.
To attend all events would hardly be possible. The organizers have set up a hectic schedule that includes dozens of showcases and presentations happening every hour on the hour. In order to help visitors properly organize their day, the expo agenda has been divided into four topics: education, tradeshow, networking, and launch pad. The first two are to familiarize attendees with “knowledge and expertise around creating the next generation web,” and introduce them to “providers of tools, technology, services and infrastructure.” Networking and Launch Pad, on the other hand, have been created for companies and individuals who are looking to expand their businesses.
Among the invited are business strategists, developers, managers, and entrepreneurs. But the doors of Web 2.0 Expo are wide open for everyone who wants to learn how the intricate and often tortuous web is woven by professionals. Far from the virtual reality, the expo also hopes to address the very real problems of the world outside computer screens. This is why the organizers plan to hold a meeting with healthcare experts, genetics, finance experts, and politicians. Write the organizers: “From harnessing collective intelligence to a bias toward open systems, the Web’s greatest inventions are, at their core, social movements.”
NewsBlaze, which covers Web 2.0 Expo San Francisco, is an acclaimed Internet source of the freshest information and opinion. Alan Gray, the chairman of NewsBlaze, will open all the doors and walk all the corridors of the Moscone Center to provide online readers with the news of highest quality.
