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Eric Schmidt (& Google) Miss the Point on Web 3.0

I just saw this perplexing video of Google CEO Eric Schmidt trying to explain what Web 3.0 is.

Ultimately, it seems that Schmidt just tries to shoehorn Web 3.0 into Google’s product strategy, talking about cloud apps that run on a variety of devices and that can be distributed virally. Is Schmidt trying to wag the dog here? Because on the Internet, the wag dogs you, dude. In all seriousness, trying to see emerging themes on the Internet is a fuzzy business in and of itself; trying to control those emerging themes by redefining them in your own terms is double bad as it (a) adds nothing back to the community driving the web’s evolution, and (b) traps you in your own mindset and positions you to miss the boat (see: Microsoft & the Internet).

I won’t even get into Schmidt’s definition of Web 2.0 (”the computer architecture we call AJAX”), or the fact that he dismisses the entire 2.0 movement as a marketing term. Talk about missing the point (AJAX??!) and disrespecting a lot of people, hard thinking, and hard work.

Google seems to be acting Microsoft-like. They’ve defined “what’s coming next” for themselves internally, and insulated by a layer of cash and a veritable-monopoly on several core products (search & advertising), show little care for what the rest of the ‘net thinks on the same topics. Google also seems to be Microsoft-fixated: the central thrust of their 3.0 vision directly combats Microsoft’s desktop model. I think these blinders are going to be a liability for Google in a 3 - 5 year timeframe.

Finally - what is Web 3.0, and how did Eric miss the point? I’m not sure yet.

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