Instead of writing a year in review sort of post like I was planning to, I've decided to do what I always do and look ahead. Below are three big things that have made a splash in 2005, but I think will get even bigger, and more importantly, more integrated in the average teen's daily internet usage.

User generated content

Or should I say, MORE user generated content. Not just blogs, but video, articles (well thought out, researched articles), games, quizzes, etc…

Just like Flickr's "blog this!" button, I feel like other websites will soon make it easier and more accessible for teens to take the content on those sites and make it their own. Or even, give them more tools to create content on their sites or add their own spin or touch to the pre-existing stuff. At the very least, websites will give teens more power to add their own feedback on the articles--which leads me to…

Comments

If we want to give this generation more labels, let's call them the Comment Generation. Or the Review Generation. With the popularity of blogs and social networking sites like Myspace, teens have gotten used to being able to comment and give their two cents about every little thing.

Just as I think blogging and creating more content (why just sit back and consume when you can be a part of the machine?) is going to become second nature to teens, so will commenting and contributing. Wikipedia and Urban Dictionary are just the beginning...

Tags

Just as high school is all about cliques and labels (the Goths, the posers, the punks, etc...) the web will be all about tags. Del.icio.us already provides an easy way to break up the internet and make it your own, and I think other sites will probably start following suit. Livejournal, Flickr and Bolt already do this.

Like the Jetsons were similar to the Flinstones, the things popular in 2005 will probably continue being popular in 2006 -- just in a bigger, more refined way. And despite how much we may talk about what will get big and what won't, we can't really know how teens will take new technology and make it relevant and useful to their everyday lives.

Because, as we all know, teens are surprising.

What do you think will make it big in 2006?

Posted by karell