In hindsight, certain things look foolish: Jewel-encrusted buggywhips, Pets.com, and GM’s interest in Hummer. I’m sure after enough time, this Web 2.0 foolishness will look just as silly. I loved some of the apps that resulted: RescueTime, Mint.com, etc. They’re neat.
Still, eventually, you’ve got to have a business model. Something that doesn’t begin and end in “ad-supported”. Something people will pay for, that they NEED, and that has some complexity and barrier-to-entry. Government protection or an outright monopoly wouldn’t hurt, either.
I’ve long bemoaned working at a hardware company, but having a revenue stream and an annuity-based business model is looking pretty good right now, just like it did in 2001.