Predictions for 2006

Loads of predictions around this time of year, here is my own take on some of what interests me:

For Immediate Release: Unfortunately, I wasn’t there for Shel & Neville’s 100th show but I’ll be there for show #200 at the end of the year. Meanwhile, they’ll get their much deserved award by July, at the latest.

Micro Persuasion: Steve Rubel will remain the go-to-guy in PR. PR-practitioners interested in blogs and companies looking for some ink in the blogosphere would do well to read his blog and establish contact. However, even moreso than in 05 bloggers will call for Steve’s opinion on the news he reports. Since he is attracting quite a few new clients for CooperKatz with his current MO, I doubt he’ll change though.

Edelman: Looking at the big PR-firms/networks you cannot overlook Richard Edelman’s network. He’ll continue to write great stuff in his own blog but also hold a blog-con this year – with his own people. Richard, Phil and Björn will get together one rainy April noon and discuss where speak up should be in two years. And of course, they’ll prove that blogs and PR go well together by attracting several high-profile clients, even in Germany.

Gapingvoid: Hugh will introduce a new line of shirts no later then April and finally extend the Stormhoek wine-offer to Germany. Apart from that, Hugh, Seth, and the team and Creating Passionate Users will be my main source for marketing insight. The downside: I’ll continue to wear Hugh’s shirts but foresee me advertising for someone else in the near future. I think I have done my share, now somebody else can be Hugh’s Carolina.

Microsoft: MS will compete again this year but not in terms of browser. Firefox has reached a critical mass and with the new accepted RSS-icon I doubt that IE will ever reach its old market share. However, Office live promises to be a great tool; I was thinking about switching to OpenOffice but will wait for the official release of Office live.

Finally, Dave Winer and Chris Pirillo. Funny enough, their podcasts were the first I listened to almost a year ago. Really strange, to listen to an old guy I had never heard about singing at the beach and somebody who sounds like he is 14 years old (sorry guys). Several IT-bios, one year in the blogosphere, several NerdTV-shows and emails with Chris himself later I am very glad that it was those two I chose to listen to by accident.
Dave Winer will keep pushing OPML but already has something new up his sleeve I am sure. And who knows, maybe we’ll collaborate in the future with a small page to promote the concept of PodCard. And Chris, well.  Gnomedex will come in first at next years poll for "Best conference" and "conference I wish I had attended". Chris will strike a co-operation with a cell phone supplier whose phones will have gada.be as their mini-browser’s start page.