Amy Shuen has done a wonderful job with this book. Its ability to blend the business, marketing and technology conversation around Web 2.0 philosophies into a cohesive discussion makes this book worth the read. While I was slightly disappointed that the book didn't spend much time on internal uses for these strategies (which could easily have been added as a seventh chapter), the focus on the value to changing a business was well researched and valuable.

In particular, spending time understanding the various value propositions around Web 2.0 was excellent. From innovation models, to monetization strategies and harnessing the long tail of a potential market, the revenue potential is clearly explored.

One comment that I read from another reader (http://infosysblogs.com/web2/2008/09/thumbs_down_for_web_20_a_strat.html) was that he felt that the language was contrived and not engaging enough. I couldn't disagree more. The book was articulate and readable, especially given the fact that the book covered so many of the dry topics that are often ignored for the sake of hype generating content.

A friend of mine really likes this book, so I got it. And, it's probably to most useful summary of the new ecommerce and Web 2.0 at work. More than other descriptive works, this has substance. Well anchored in with successful examples.

I'm not sure what I originally expected from this book, but I believe it was a valuable read. It is more like a text book than a touchy-feelie hug fest of the wonders of Web 2.0 - great, concrete ideas, but at times a little dry. Once I adjusted to the format, I found the overview to be thorough and well organized - telling a compelling story in a somewhat academic way - chock full of case studies accompanied by charts, tables, flow charts and figures that supplement the key points.

Overall, very useful and I believe the systematic approach has a lot of value, but it is definitely better suited for left-brain readers.


Marc Crudele
innerEcho - Atlanta, GA

Written in an engaging easy to read style; then you pour some coffee and the implications start to hit you. "If this, then..." and "Hey, we could make money ...". My favorite is "That's how they use the stuff I do! Wow!"

Information is presented with an idea, how it has been applied, some visual clarification, and then more meat on the concepts. Chapters have questions at the end and more notes at the end of the book. "Bravo!" for the end notes, moving them elsewhere kept the chapters powerfully concise and still provide more detail where you need it. Pages of bibliography help as well.

The author doesn't preach the new order but simply explains advantages of Web 2.0. Her explinations provide new ways to look at an established business, guidance for entrepreneurial spirits just building their next big thing, and even business collateral ideas that would support non-web brick and mortars.

My perceptions have been expanded and I'm seeing strong business advantage from applied technicals. If you're a geek who hasn't felt your work contributes to a larger whole, give this a read! You'll see the past clearer and glimpse the short-term future.

While most people who have worked in the internet space are familiar with these concepts, especially for entrepreneurs, reading this book and thinking through all the end of chapter questions is extremely helpful. All startups can revisit these questions again and again. I think despite the fact that this book sits squarely in the time of web 2.0, it will remain useful and relevant even when web 2.0 seems 'old-school.'
The questions at the end of each chapter are so, so great.

While most people who have worked in the internet space are familiar with these concepts, especially for entrepreneurs, reading this book and thinking through all the end of chapter questions is extremely helpful. All startups can revisit these questions again and again. I think despite the fact that this book sits squarely in the time of web 2.0, it will remain useful and relevant even when web 2.0 seems 'old-school.'
The questions at the end of each chapter are so, so great.

This is a great book that puts Web 2.0 in business terms. Normally, I read books that deal in gory technical details--not books that speak in business terms. But given that caveat, I felt this did a really good job describing Web 2.0 concepts and illustrating how they can be monetized.

The book illustrates the various points it makes through referring to sites that everyone now knows about: eBay, Amazon.com, Flikr, LinkedIn, Facebook, and of course Google. Each of these success stories show how some traditional business thinking was turned on its head in favor of this new Web 2.0 business model. Throughout the 6 chapters of the book, the author provides lots of market analysis, charts, and graphs. This information is combined with some interesting studies in sociology to create a read that is well-researched and informative.

While not a casual read, I'd recommend this book to managers or executives interesting in learning about how Web 2.0 principles can be applied to their business.

Web 2.0 provides a business focused follow-up to many of technical concepts discussed in Collective Intelligence. Conceptually I believe Web 2.0 provides the underlying justifications for "why" an organization wants to be pursue a new knowledge management strategy that uses the basically limitless resources of the many Internet users to create value. Collective Intelligence describes the how and Web 2.0 discusses the why. This book is essential for those who are interested in the technical side of the web 2.0, Web 2.0 provides the business justifications that the reader can wrap his or her technical vision in a Web 2.0 business strategy.

Relying on case studies ranging from Flickr and Facebook to Netflix and LinkedIn, "Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide" provides entrepreneurs, corporations and business administration students equally with a resource to make sense of the business side of all things Web 2.0.

The book doesn't go into technicalities or spend time on design matters as they typically appear in Web 2.0 applications today: as a matter of fact, it abstracts itself from look and feel of the sites analyzed, focusing on how the different sites make money.

The result is a five step action plan that starts with building on collective user value (users no longer are mere consumers of content, but rather active contributors and creators); activating network effects (seeking the ways in which a business can leverage the multiple connections between the layers, places and groups and how they can grow your offering); working through social networks (the fundamental building block of the Web 2.0 economy); dynamically syndicating competence (picking your battles and doing what you do best faster, making it accessible to more people); and recombining innovations (looking for ways to connect the online with the offline, the new with the old).

The result is a book that is highly recommended if you are looking to take your business to the next level of the social web: a place where being social is not merely an option but a requirement.

The book is impressive in its clarity. Shuen's concise, clear language presents the marketing and business aspects of Web 2.0 without the typical hype. If you are new to Web 2.0, social networks and curious about the rise of Facebook, Youtube, and similar outlets, then give this book a thorough read. You will come away understanding the core business principles driving the success of these online behemoths.

One example of user-contributed value Shuen highlights is the tag cloud on Flickr. The tag cloud is a categorization of popular items on the site derived from user input. The tag cloud allows people to explore through concepts rather than just finding specific. Shuen reports that 85% of the photos in Flickr have human-added metadata. This data is used to better organize search and categorize the images. The interaction with the customer is a key item Shuen points out as critical to Flickr's success. This user contribution to the site generates value for all users. A key she says to successful Web 2.0 operations.

Shuen also highlights LinkedIn and Facebook. She describes positive network effects at work in these companies. On LinkedIn the value of the site is determined by the network it can offer you. When you join the network, you add a positive impact, your presence may lead to others to join or you may linked up previously separated groups. By joining the network you increase its utility to all users while simultaneously making it more attractive to non-users. These positive network effects as Shuen calls them are critical to Web 2.0 success.

A nice feature of the book, is that at the end of each chapter, Shuen presents Strategic and Tactical Questions. These are excellent bullet list to help you think about enabling Web 2.0 on your business or expanding your Web 2.0 up-start. For example, she encourages you to "think about positive network effects" taking place in your business. How have you actively considered and worked with positive network effects to grown your company?

Shuen break downs Web 2.0 into some key areas: collective user value, network effects, competence syndication, and recombinant innovation areas she documents as core to Web 2.0 business. If these you want to learn more about these concepts and Web 2.0 in general, this is the book to start.

if you've ever considered starting a web business, this books presents many examples and thought provoking questions keep you in the right direction.

In Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide, author Amy Shuen demonstrates subject mastery from the first sentence. Steeped in her topic (she's taught it at Wharton, Haas School of Business, CEIBS and École Polytechnique), the reader gets detailed information on the meaning of Web 2.0. This isn't a book filled with hype -it provides theory, thoughtful detail and is practical. Chapters end with strategic and tactical questions. The illustrations and screen captures provide depth and clarity. Companies like Flickr, LinkedIn, and Facebook are used as case studies.

In the first chapter, Users Create Value, she tags Flickr as the poster child for freemium-based businesses. Shuen points out that this model was first developed in 2006-and that low marketing, investment and distribution costs allow revenue streams to cover costs quickly. She's ahead of another book on the topic that's expected at the end of 2008 -Free by Wired's Chris Anderson.

There's a great discussion on mash-ups in Chapter Four, Companies Capitalize Competencies. The final chapter of the book, Businesses Incorporate Strategies, contains Shuen's Five Steps to Web 2.0-thought-provoking reading for anyone in business. You'll have to read the book to fully understand her rationale, but here are the steps as she sees them:

+Build on collective user value
+Activate network effects
+Work through social networks
+Dynamically syndicate competence
+Build a Web 2.0 business plan

The publisher, O'Reilly, distributes Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide under their Safari imprint. This means that there is an online version of the book for quick access that allows a reader to put the material to work almost immediately. Other publishers should follow O'Reilly's lead--their organization clearly embraces multiple ways to provide value to readers.

I recommend this book for tech neophytes who know that they need to learn more about Web 2.0, and for seasoned experts who want to gain exposure to a rich set of cases-along with questions that will compel them to dig deeper on the topic.

I found this book mildly irritating, until I realized that it was in fact perfect for what it sets out to be, an introduction of Web 2.0 concepts for those who know nothing about the Web, i.e. executives who still dictate memoranda, still budget for print advertising, etcetera. O'Reilly has a superb model for leveraging conferences and publishing books, but O'Reilly should have known better than to publish this book in 2008 without reference to Web 3.0. Wikipedia has a fine overview of Web 3.0, start there, I have put the URL in the comment below.

I found the book bland and disappointing, and found--when discussing Amazon, for example, the book reads more like an advertisement and has no clue on all the stuff Amazon is not doing (see the comment for two URLs), such as microtext for micro-cash, creating global intelligence councils on poverty and every other topic using top authors, and creating local citizen intelligence minutemen who can do real-time observation in the context of Amazon's excellent S3 cloud, which is in my view operating at less than 10% of its potential because Bezos has two things on his mind: outerspace and Kindle.

The end notes and the bibliography are the best part of the book. The index stinks. 7 pages for a 214 page book, should have been at least 14--it was an afterthought and done badly.

Better books on Web 2.0 and Generation 2.0 include:
Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies
Mobilizing Generation 2.0: A Practical Guide to Using Web2.0 Technologies to Recruit, Organize and Engage Youth
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Better books on the larger scheme of things:
Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration
The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom
New World New Mind Changing the Way We
Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge
The Future of the Internet--And How to Stop It
Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace

I found this book mildly irritating, until I realized that it was in fact perfect for what it, an introduction of Web 2.0 concepts for those who know nothing about the Web, i.e. executives who still dictate memoranda, still budget for print advertising, etcetera. O'Reilly has a superb model for leveraging conferences and publishing books, but O'Reilly should have known better than to publish this book in 2008 without reference to Web 3.0. Wikipedia has a fine overview of Web 3.0, start there, I have put the URL in the comment below.

I found the book bland and disappointing, and found--when discussing Amazon, for example, the book reads more like an advertisement and has no clue on all the stuff Amazon is not doing (see the comment for two URLs), such as microtext for micro-cash, creating global intelligence councils on poverty and every other topic using top authors, and creating local citizen intelligence minutemen who can do real-time observation in the context of Amazon's excellent S3 cloud, which is in my view operating at less than 10% of its potential because Bezos has two things on his mind: outerspace and Kindle.

The end notes and the bibliography are the best part of the book. The index stinks. 7 pages for a 214 page book, should have been at least 14--it was an afterthought and done badly.

Better books on Web 2.0 and Generation 2.0 include:
Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies
Mobilizing Generation 2.0: A Practical Guide to Using Web2.0 Technologies to Recruit, Organize and Engage Youth
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Better books on the larger scheme of things:
Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration
The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom
New World New Mind Changing the Way We
Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge
The Future of the Internet--And How to Stop It
Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace

I found this book mildly irritating, until I realized that it was in fact perfect for what it, an introduction of Web 2.0 concepts for those who know nothing about the Web, i.e. executives who still dictate memoranda, still budget for print advertising, etcetera. I tried to call O'Reilly to discuss the book, and was blown off. In any event, O'Reilly should have known better than to publish this book in 2008 without reference to Web 3.0, which is where most of us are focusing now and have been since 2004 or so. Wikipedia has a fine overview of Web 3.0, start there, I have put the URL in the comment below.

I found the book bland and disappointing, and found--when discussing Amazon, for example, the book reads more like an advertisement and has no clue on all the stuff Amazon is not doing (see the comment for two URLs), such as microtext for micro-cash, creating global intelligence councils on poverty and every other topic using top authors, and creating local citizen intelligence minutemen who can do real-time observation in the context of Amazon's excellent S3 cloud, which is in my view operating at less than 10% of its potential because Bezos has two things on his mind: outerspace and Kindle.

The end notes and the bibliography are the best part of the book. The index stinks. 7 pages for a 214 page book, should have been at least 14--it was an afterthought and done badly.

Better books on Web 2.0 and Generation 2.0 include:
Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies
Mobilizing Generation 2.0: A Practical Guide to Using Web2.0 Technologies to Recruit, Organize and Engage Youth
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations
Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything

Better books on the larger scheme of things:
Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration
The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom
New World New Mind Changing the Way We
Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge
The Future of the Internet--And How to Stop It
Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace

Since I work in the technical side of web development, I somehow expected this book to be more about the technical attributes of this new phenomenon called Web 2.0. I was ready to read about AJAX and similar recent technical innovations and their effect on using the Internet to more successfully conduct business. Instead, the author, Amy Shuen, clearly states that this book is about strategy, rather than a focus on technology. The word "strategy" is in the book's title!
The book indeed focuses on marketing strategy. Ms Shuen demonstrates through real-life examples how various companies are creating new opportunities for success through Web 2.0 business models. She delves into the workings of Flickr, Google, Facebook, and Amazon to demonstrate how the underlying principles she has identified as Web 2.0 processes have been applied to drive each company to growth and profitability. Using Web 2.0 strategy, a company can start by offering a free service, such as a free search capability (Google) or a place to store, organize, access, and share personal photos (Flickr). The next step is then to reach a critical mass of active uploaders or users of the service to create powerful cross-network and social network effects. These network effects then can be mined for advertising and targeted pay-per-click marketing. Who would have thought a great free search web site could make billions of dollars per year!
There is still some amount of disagreement about just what Web 2.0 means, with some people labeling it as a meaningless marketing buzzword, and others accepting it as the new conventional wisdom. Tim Berners-Lee, the creator and architect of the web, in fact, has some really big doubts that Web 2.0 is different from Web 1.0 at all. On the other side, Tim O'Reilly, whose Web 2.0 conferences gave the name to the phenomenon, gives the following examples of Web 1.0 versus corresponding Web 2.0 entities:
Double Click versus Google AdSense; Ofoto versus Flickr; Akamai versus BitTorrent; [...] versus Napster; Britannica Online versus Wikepedia; personal websites versus blogging; page views versus cost per click; screen scraping versus web services; publishing versus participation; content management systems versus wikis; directories (taxonomy) versus tagging ("folksonomy"); stickiness versus syndication.
The above comparisons did provide me some sense of differentiation between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 properties; perhaps it might also enlighten some readers of this book.
In Chapter 6, the author presents her list of five steps to successful Web 2.0 implementation. She states that a key ingredient of many Web 2.0 projects is their ability to collect information from users and then share it in a form that people are willing to pay for. Determining how to build this collective user value is the difficult but essential first step. Another huge step is how to use the created network effects to achieve a successful and continuous revenue stream. This chapter, as well as the entire book, consists of guidelines and suggestions, of course, not clearly delineated steps to successful Web 2.0 implementation.
I would recommend this book both to the entrepreneur and business type person and to the "techie" person. I learned many things about Web 2.0 companies, the power of collaboration and social networking, and marketing strategies. The author's "End Notes" section of the book was also a great source of information and explanations about the whole subject of Web 2.0 terms.

I think this is a very good book. It is not a book of buzzwords and hype. Its chapters lead with theory, go to detail, end with lists of lessons learned, and finally provide a list of questions and answers (Q&A). There are the following six chapters included:

1. Users create value
2. Networks multiply effects
3. People build connections
4. Companies capitalize competences
5. New recombines with old
6. Businesses incorporate strategies

In the Q&A sections there are both strategic questions and tactical questions to help the reader get a better handle on how Web 2.0 allows entrepreneurs to make more money by targeting a smaller market that seeks hard-to-find products and services instead of large volumes of popular items. Apparently Web 2.0 is all about "the niche." And it is all about networking with other sellers and the customers.

This book points out that Web 2.0 is about creating multiple streams of revenues as opposed to single streams. Instead of just generating sales of a product or service, Web 2.0 thinking and logic demands that the Web site owner consider generating membership fees, advertising fees, licensing fees, sponsorship fees, and yes, sales of product and services of their own or through affiliate relationships.

The five-step action plan included in this book includes the following steps:

>>Build on collective user value
>>Activate network effects
>>Work though social networks
>>Dynamically syndicate competence
>>Recombine innovations.

If the above list does not make sense to you, then I highly recommend you read this book. It will after reading the chapters. Do you want to create a Web 2.0 business, or integrate Web 2.0 strategies with your existing business? If so, then you'll be creating places online where people like to come together and share what they think, see, and do.

Four large and popular companies are used as examples of leaders in using Web 2.0 in their business models: Google, Flickr, Facebook, and Amazon. I think we all know a lot, or at least something, about each of these companies. So their use in this book was excellent in my humble opinion.

This book is only 172 pages long until it gets to the endnotes and bibliography. Maybe it is kind of short? But I won't hold that against it. There is much good content between its covers. And the bibliography was quite impressive. It spanned from pages 215-235 and was packed with tons of great books and articles for the reader to seek out and read. 5 stars!

Web 2.0 (the book) does a great job to bridge the gap about how valuable social networking and collective intelligence is. This book is a great explanation of how Web 2.0 can be an economic success instead of the common question "How can a social networking site make money". The author explains very well how the business model works in comparison to traditional web commerce. If you need to connect the dots why Web 2.0 works, then this is a great book.

On a side note, I noticed that the author gets away from explaining why sites like YouTube work (maybe because the author cannot provide strong reasons of an economic model other than Google keeping it's relevance by owning traffic).

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy of this wonderful book. I normally don't set aside current books to dive into a new one, but this is a book that I've been waiting on for a long time and I was eager to jump right in -- and what a treat it turned out to be!

If you aren't a techie, Web 2.0 probably doesn't mean much to you. You might think it is just the "next version" of the Internet or just a new way of doing things online -- such as blogging, video, etc. In this the book the author shows you that Web 2.0 is so much more than the "what" -- it's actually mostly about the "how".

How can a business -- be it IBM or your one-man home-based operation -- benefit from new advances and developments online? How can you change your way of thinking about business to take advantage of the power of communities that are popping up all over the Internet? How can you learn from others, such as Amazon and Flickr, who made major changes to their business models and discovered new ways of doing business?

If you want another book on geek tech, then this book isn't for you. If you own your own business, or are just merely an employee looking for innovative ways of getting things done, this book is for you. I have no doubt that there will be people who read this book who will have an "Aha!" moment and transform the Internet even more. I learned so much from this book that it is difficult to just pick one or two main points to focus on.

When you are done with this book you'll understand how revolutions and evolutions on the Internet have changed the way we do business -- from online to offline. You'll also better understand how social networks play such a crucial role in everyday life and how they are turning traditional business models on their head.

You owe it to yourself to read this book -- your take on business will never be the same afterwards.