Event Report | NILS | Cyworld & Netvibes

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One of the highlights of NILS was certainly the presentation by Cyworld’s founder Yong Joon HYOUNG. Between social theory and future of Internet.

• Ever heard of “Personal Resource Planner“, “Social Process Reengineering” or “Trust-based Information Sharing“? Well, all this is key to the development not only of Internet, but of society as a whole (Yong quoted in the same speech several social philosophers and Harvard Business Review researches). Some of it is also covered in our Cyworld report for which we interviewed Yong.
• As a side note: Yong also showed some hip-hop dancing skills before getting started and got a great response from Japanese IT execs – when Tim Draper sang a song in a conference in Beijing earlier this year the i-banker crowd was much colder…

Another great one was Netvibes’ CEO Tariq KRIM’s presentation. Talking about how time is a strategic choice, while attention is a personal choice.

• Our digital life is growing out of control and Netvibes is about where you focus your attention. 80+ languages, 85,000 feeds, widgets, podcasts, etc. 1.5 million unique RSS feeds managed.
• Netvibes’ vision is the widgetized web.
• Step 1: free the data (web pages)
• Step 2: free applications (google calendar)
• Step 3: Free the user (Netvibes). The Web is the next OS.

The effects of this are:

• The end of the web page
• The end of the browser (as we know it)
• and the “deportalization“: break the web in small independent pieces of living information: widgets.

To accelerate this, Netvibes released its “Universal API” and the “Netvibes Universe” helping media and brands widgetize their content. I must say that I thought Netvibes was more a smart combination of features, and Tariq’s vision was surprising and made me think, and eventually agree in part. I will develop later how I incorporated this in my ‘three Internet futures theory‘.

As if this was not enough in a single conference, Masashi from Globis got the idea of ending with a panel discussion with Yong, Tariq and the COO of Japan’s largest mobile SNS! We would only have needed Kasahara-san, CEO of Japan’s largest SNS Mixi for an all-star panel.

• The discussion triggered especially between Tariq, with his ‘deportalized Internet‘ and ‘living information‘ ideas and Yong with his ‘trust-based‘ concepts was totally amazing. Some great questions from the audience led to an even higher level.
• Unfortunately, DeNA was not in top shape to contribute on mobile aspects (actually, their concept is rather a smart combination of existing things than a visionary concept – but they could have brought some interesting things to the panel).

I did not transcript much as I was… recording the panel! The DV tape is still in Japan in the hands of an overworked friend so getting it might take a while. If I get rights clearance from Globis it will be published on the site later.

– Benjamin (back in Beijing)