By Technology Times Reporter
Lagos. February 23, 2013: After “Cloud Technology” in 2011 and “Managing Trust” in 2012, “Shareconomy” is the keynote theme for CeBIT 2013, organisers of the largest technology trade event holding next month in Hannover, Germany have announced.
“Cloud-based applications are clearly on the rise, and have now earned user trust. As the world¿s most important event for the digital economy, CeBIT will spotlight this sweeping trend that emphasises sharing knowledge, resources and experience to create new forms of collaboration,” says Frank Porschmann, Member of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe.
“New information and communications technologies provide the foundation. The sharing phenomenon is proving in all of its facets to be a pivotal factor in achieving responsible growth”, he adds noting that “Shareconomy” describes the societal shift from owning to sharing.
According to Porschmann, this is evident in several dimensions: “First, Shareconomy is profoundly influencing enterprise processes, because social media tools will become more and more popular. Second, the Internet is the place for teamwork, both in and outside the company. Partners, consultants, suppliers and customers will be more closely integrated as part of a networked process. The borders separating companies and organisations will become ever more transparent. Therefore, employees and managers must rethink and be prepared to share know-how, contacts and assets.”
Modern tools that enable fast and comprehensive sharing are already reality in successful companies. “Blogs, wikis, collaboration, polls and other software solutions will dynamically change our working world in the coming years. Communication will change; the way decisions are made; the role of management, along with what employees expect from their future employers,” said Porschmann. “Put simply, it’s about the Facebooking of the global economy. Whoever wants to be successful must actively network.”
Different sectors of industry are now working more closely together to generate innovation. “Software and telecommunications providers will grow with such user industries as automotive, energy and healthcare, becoming inseparable.”
This is already apparent in the use of everyday products, where the strong trend is towards using instead of owning or renting instead of buying. “Car-sharing is becoming an increasingly popular form of mobility. Music portals based not on ownership but rather on time-defined usage are very popular,” adds Porschmann.
He notes that software solutions will also be even more used as needed: customised, targeted, application-specific. The trend is moving from a complete package solution to shared solutions like SaaS (Software as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service) and IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service).
Such developments also pose political challenges. “An international discussion about usage rights is crucial. Right now there are only fragmented national regulations which slow the growth of the globalised economy,” said Porschmann.
A multistage screening process involving top executives from leading high-tech companies and user industries, international research institutes, and thousands of fans at the CeBIT Facebook fan page resulted in Shareconomy being selected for the CeBIT 2013 keynote theme. “The trend was clear,” says Porschmann, “Shareconomy is currently the hottest topic for business and society.”
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