Global Threats...
Global Opportunities

THE WEALTH OF NETWORKS
September 25–26, 2007
Boston, MA

members field trip
FIDELITY CENTER FOR
APPLIED TECHNOLOGY
September 27

David Reed previews the conference (MP3)

Charlie Brenner previews
the field trip (MP3)

conference overview
The instantiations of what we call Web 2.0—RSS feeds, mash-ups, Web hacks, wikis, and so forth—will soon be seen as mere blips when compared with the pervasive networks that follow. Radical changes in information production that the Internet has introduced are reshaping markets and forcing organizations to restructure their value propositions. What are the ramifications when networks become the context of our work and lives? Who’s threatened, and what’s next?

A wealth of networks allows for smoother collaboration as data and applications quickly make their way to the Web. With networks everywhere, where data resides no longer matters, as long as it’s easily accessible. Software running on laptops may soon fade away, as Web-resident apps get rented, shared, shifted, rebuilt, and mashed up.

Customer relationships and connections between data will become paramount. As enterprises move their IT operations out to third parties, and as these third parties hold the IP of multiple organizations, who will really own IP? How quickly will an organization be able to change its business model if its IT department is outsourced?

The abundance and interconnection of networks will seriously challenge traditional business models. It will redefine how we do things: emergent and freeform vs. predefined and structured, bottom-up vs. command-and-control, and self-service vs. mediated. The benefits will be huge; they will generate opportunities for new kinds of partnerships among companies and could create real value. There will be serious downsides as well. We’ll examine the pros, the cons, the rapid scaling, and the new class of risk in a thoroughly networked world. Some networks may become invisible. How will organizations deal with stealthy competitors? Expect disruption, and expect it soon.

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Partial list of speakers

Dr. Yochai Benkler, Co-director, Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard Law School
Mr. Ross Button, Vice President, Technology Leadership, CGI
Mr. Nicholas Carr, Author, Does IT Matter? Information Technology and the Corrosion of Competitive Advantage
Mr. Juha Christensen , CEO, Sonopia
Dr. David Clark, Senior Research Scientist, MIT Laboratory for Computer Science
Dr. John Clippinger, Senior Fellow, Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard Law School
Mr. Shay David, CTO, Kaltura
Mr. Michael Furdyk, Co-founder and Director of Technology, TakingITGlobal.org
Dr. Andrew McAfee, Associate Professor, Business Administration, Harvard Business School
Dr. Eric Miller, President, Zepheira
Dr. Larry Peterson, Director, PlanetLab Consortium
Mr. David Prior, Chief Technologist, Research & Development, General Dynamics
Mr. John Robb, Vice President, Product Management, Zimbra
Mr. Sean Scott, President, ALS Therapy Development Institute
Mr. Clay Shirky, Writer and Consultant
Dr. Henry Tirri, Research Fellow, Nokia Research Center
Dr. Duncan Watts, Professor, Department of Sociology, Columbia University

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