Will We Face Another Internet Boom in 2012?

These days the most popular activity among young people is surfing the internet. As you might have guessed, most young people in developed as well as developing countries are spending time I learning, shopping, socializing and just killing time on the computer. In fact, the amount of time the average American spends on the internet has risen 121% over the past 5 years. This significant rise in the level of use can be attributed b the boom in internet technology and the cost of computers, which has dropped dramatically over the past five years. This is great news for web entrepreneurs who are in their first start up. Statistics show that people are not only spending more time on the web, but they are looking for more things to do and more places to spend their money. With new websites like Woot and Etsy where some of the strangest items we sold, there are many places for consumers to get the things they need. Considering that online firms like are amazon growing rapidly and big box retailers like Best Buy are downsizing, I think it is safe to say that the internet sector is virtually unaffectd by the economic recession we we currently experiencing in the United States. I think that many economists and business people alike are reluctant to give too much hype to the current internet boom because for web, the track record is most certainly against it. The big stock market web bubble of the late 90s was enough to scare the pants off of investors for the rest of their lives. Thus it has been slow going in the funding environment for web start-up companies until very recently. The internet has been a rather scary arena for big money ever since it’s invention in the mid 90s. This is simply because the misunderstand the value that is offered. And understandably so. For the first time we have companies that create value out of thin air and store it in thin air too! Ever heard of cloud based web hosting? For the first time in history we are forced to evaluate products that don’t physically exist (software) and services that are done by computers rather than humans. However, there is hope for beginning web start ups. Luckily, big name firms like Amazon, Facebook, and Google have pioneered the industry, and in doing so, opened the minds and pockets of institutional investors. Of course, here comes the catch 22 for many web entrepreneurs. Why would they be interested in big money if operating expenses and overhead for most web businesses are so small? In fact, there seems to be some resistance among entrepreneurs to seek big capital if they don’t need it and the majority are beginning to look for angel investors who have a bit of knowledge and experience in internet businesses. In the end, whether institutional investors decide to get involved or not, the internet will continue to grow and provide value to more people across the globe in 2012.