The Top Ten reasons that you should pick me to party like a rockstar in Vegas for Pubcon 2007:

#10: I am a wanna be webmaster with a tendency to register some of the stupidest domain names ever, for example:

• Wammr.com
• Hospibilities.com
• DeuceBlogalo.com
• FeedFuzz.com
• Cashiki.com
• Mogulish.com

#9:The last time I was in Vegas I ended up being conned out of $400 when a trip to the upstairs bar at Scores with 2 strippers resulted in multiple glasses of champagne and a serious headache.

#8: I have some of the worst luck poker has ever seen blowing a perfectly crafted bankroll on the first hand of a $1000NL tournament when my pocket aces lost to ace king.

#7: I feel that Neil Patel is my kindred spirit.

#6: I will introduce you to the funniest blackjack dealer you have ever met in your life…his name is Shuga and he works at the Hard Rock Hotel…think James Brown meets Rick James.

#5: I will use the $500 spending money on 1 hand of blackjack which I will repeatedly double until I hit $10,000 or go bust.

#4: I have been known to go into hour long dance sessions at nightclubs after a few drinks for no apparent reason.

#3: No matterhow much I drink I never get sick or become incoherent…last test:

• 5 Coronas
• 3 Heinekens
• 4 Rum & Cokes
• 3 Jager Bombs

#2: I am not an SEO Rockstar, but I once received a hit on my poker blog for the search term “Free Viagara In Atlanta”

#1: I have a serious affinity for partying…see below:

It has been the buzz of the internet and is here to stay…web 2.0 is upon us. But what exactly is web 2.0? According to Wikipedia, “Web 2.0 refers to a perceived second generation of web-based communities and hosted services — such as social-networking sites, wikis and folksonomies — which aim to facilitate collaboration and sharing between users.”

Since its inception, the web 2.0 culture has seen the rise of some of the most successful group oriented websites such as YouTube and Digg which have redefined social media on the internet. The phenomenon has also spawned countless websites all trying to cash in on the buzz and attraction of this new form of e-collaboration and sharing. The only problem is, the business models are lacking.

Looking at web 2.0 styled sites strictly from a business standpoint, there is no basis for growth. Sure the big dogs like Facebook, YouTube and a select other few have climbed the ranks to become highly profitable enterprises (Google’s takeover of YouTube - $1.65 Billion and Facebook’s astronomical valuation - $16 Billion), but the vast majority of web 2.0 sites can only fathom to ever come within reach of these giants. I can’t even begin to explain the amount of sites that I see on a daily basis who have developed useful tools and raised millions of dollars in venture capital but have no plan or model in place to derive revenues from their website or service.

It seems in the web 2.0 world, the only business model that everyone follows is to build a popular site and sell ads on it. In essence, there is nothing wrong with this concept and it has been a proven business model for a number of years, however it is a highly competitive space in the current market and as the internet develops advertisers are seeking out highly targeted advertising campaigns to maximize their dollars.

With the millions upon millions of dollars that venture capital firms are pouring into websites with little or no chance to turn a profit I predict that the web 2.0 trend will greatly slow down over the coming years and will revert more back to profit based websites with real revenue strategies.

As the battle between Google, Microsoft and Yahoo continues for online dominance, Microsoft delivered a blow to its competitors recently announcing a $240 Million investment in social networking giant Facebook in exchange for 1.6% ownership in the company. The deal which was publicly announced this past Wednesday, puts a staggering $15 Billion value on the three year old website which is on track to generate $150 Million in revenues this year.

As a part of the deal, Microsoft has negotiated to be the exclusive server of banner advertising on Facebook on a split revenue basis (their former advertising deal with facebook was good until 2011). The deal ends what was surely a vicious battle over the past two months between Microsoft, Google and Yahoo who all were in talks with Facebook trying to secure the deal.

Representatives from Facebook say they plan to use the capital to expand overseas operations, increase their employee infastructure and develop a complex advertising system designed to serve ads on profiles based on personal interests, which is scheduled to be released sometime next month.

Since its inception three years ago, Facebook has experienced unparalleled success due to its functionailty and practicality in the social networking space. Founder Mark Zuckerberg, now 23 currently holds a 20% stake in the company which with Microsofts recent investment values his share at $3 Billion. Stay tuned for more news on the emerging Facebook ad platform.

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