Internet What’s Next?
The Pew Research Center recently surveyed over 2,500 technology experts and researchers on their predictions for the internet over the next twenty years, although they range in opinion, most forsee that sharing info on the internet will soon be so second nature that it will become "invisible, flowing like electricity".
Connected living with the internet of things (IoT) is the future. Technology and life’s daily activity will meld together as one seamless experience. Companies like Apple, Google, Samsung, AT & T, Cisco, SAP, Oracle, IBM & many more are working to bring connectedness to every aspect of our lives. Smart appliances will become networked to one another to anticipate your needs by monitoring you and everything around you, from your fridge reminding you to pick up some eggs, to your alarm clock adjusting itself in the morning to prevent you from getting stuck in traffic, among other things. The goal is to make life more convenient and productive, but what will this mean for your privacy and security?
As for social media, we know that Facebook is investing in artificial intelligence and virtual reality, as they also anticipate the change to connected living. Yet, in the U.S, most of our lives are so saturated with social media that many are growing tired of their frankly boring experiences on these mega social networks. We’ve seen in the recent months how greedy these giants can be in taking advantage of their users. For example, Facebook’s feed experiment scandal and for frankly cheating many corporate and small companies alike by throttling posts and charging users to reach their own followers, not to mention what they otherwise do with our info. So what’s the good news?
Internet users of tomorrow will become more intentional with their online presence by joining online communities that better suit their interests, i.e specialized online communities like outdoors.community, French.community, etc.. The power of social media will move away from mega networks and back in our favor both as users and business owners. For businesses/groups/organizations, making their own online community means unfiltered access to their followers, but also the chance to become part of tomorrow’s connected living. This is something that has become impossible on Facebook, and soon also on other social media giants as they continue monetizing. The internet of things and specialized online communities will allow for more personalized user experiences.