Search Darwin-ism

The web is constantly evolving around us; that much is obvious. A new website here and a new technology there allow us to see where the web is headed.

But what about technologies outside the realm of the Internet?

A recent Search Insider blog post speculated a statement made by MySpace co-founder Tom Anderson that MySpace has “replaced MTV.” The blogger concludes that MTV hasn’t been replaced, but has evolved with a changing generation.

So are offline technologies evolving into web 2.0 technologies?

Spout.com (now IndieWire) is another example of evolution. If MySpace is the web 2.0 MTV, Spout is the HBO. Spout brings a new dimension to the world of movies, films and DVDs by creating the social networking that this area of interest was desperately searching for.

How often do you and your friends talk about movies? Spout serves up movie blogs with reviews and news from the industry. How often do you find yourself walking the aisles of a video rental store or perusing the Netflix library looking for an interesting title? Spout has also incorporated movie lists into its site, allowing users to share opinions in a Top 10-style format.

And who hasn’t already made the comparison that the PPC ad is the new newspaper ad? Strikingly similar even in appearance at times, these two forms of media are obviously related. MTV seems to be surviving well if MySpace is really evolving above it, but the newspaper industry is in desperate need of help. Google sees promise in this media still though (see my previous post: Apple Hitmen & Google Bodyguards).

So what else will make the evolutionary transition to the web?