Commercial: The second internet

Yes, I know you thought that the '2.0' in Web 2.0 might have implied that any beastie lumbering under the name 'the second internet' might already be here.

But, no, apparently not, according to yet another breathless piece of research from another company that you hadn't heard of before, and will never hear of again.

Still I thought the principles they adumbrated, or rather the markings by which one might recognise this latest evolution in the digital zoo, were worth sharing, to whit:

- Platforms open their API to developers
- Continuous and rapid pace of innovation
- The company/brand must listen to the dialogue and participate with customers
- Customer contribution is a large percent of the value/experience
- Every customer has a personalized experience
- Social graph connections drive discovery rather than search

And I thought, substitute and/or stick in the word 'brand' into those, and you've got some pretty good rules for what your brand might need to do / become / evolve into, to become a 'platform', an idea whose time might finally be arriving.