Today marks the start of one of Europe’s largest internet and social media conferences: Le Web Paris. I’ll be attending the main sessions and reporting back on what’s being said by some of the industry’s big names. Check back here later today to get soundbites and headlines from the day’s discussions.
7.45am – It’s a big morning to get through, with spokespeople from Microsoft, Google, Harvard University and Myspace all before 10.30!
9.00am – Found a seat and the wi-fi, wondering how long before the multitude of connections cause it to fall over.
9.10am – The Le Meurs take the stage to the sound of “All you need is love” – 1700 people registered this year. explaining the venue and the programme.
9.22am – Steve Gillmor interviewing Dan’l Lewin from Microsoft about BizSpark – its new initiative for sub 3-year start-ups. The approach is to support open source for interoperability, but Lewin says that BizSpark is a partnership and a choice that you make… “we provide more help”. Also in line for Azure stuff announced earlier this year.
9.43am – Loic Le Meur talking to Nikesh Arora at Google. “There is a lower appetite for risk in certain businesses in Europe than there is in the US”. Arora says that the next big internet sensation is “two guys in a garage”. 10 years ago, no-one was scared of Google. The guys in the garage are the ones to watch. However, European cultural differences, especially languages can have a negative impact.
10.26 – WiFi is shaky throughout the conference, but Harvard Uni’s David Weinberger produces the session of the morning so far on leadership. “The only way to reduce the scarcity of leadership is to embrace abundance of connections so that leadership becomes a property of the network.”
10.28 – Michael Arrington of TechCrunch interviewing Amit Kapur, COO MySpace – mostly about MySpace Music. Kapur has announced the launch of a MySpace toolbar. Unsure if it’ll be much use to people using FireFox extensions or Flock. Music in the toolbar? Now there’s a thought.
10.45 – Ok coffee break.
11.56 – After a far from rousing version of Frere Jacques led by Itay Talgam, DNA tracking start-up 23AndMe founder Linda Avey sits down for a chat with Cedric Ingrand of LCI-TV. Personalised DNA reports just from spitting into a tube. Not sure where the “Love” theme comes in.
12.21 – Helen Fisher, anthropologist responsible for bits of Match.com is on stage talking about the work of the brain and chemicals in falling in love. Apparently a tendancy for adultery is evolved – not sure that works as a valid defense.
12.36 – It’s snowing, and very cold inside. According to my client at Pfizer, the venue used to be a morgue.
12.43 – More from Dr Fisher… personality types very similar to the colour tests we use at Red’s HR – nice to know that human resources can be applied to love.
13.07 – Dr Fisher’s talk produces the most questions so far… the “colours” thing is fascinating to all. Something we can expect a bunch of blog posts about – since bloggers are “mostly red and yellow”.
LUNCH
