Sharing

Just attended a webinar on "The Mesh:  Why the Future of Business is Sharing".  The presenter stated that there is a trend moving from full ownership to the idea of shared access.  Some examples are where there are data partnerships, so that a company will get a more full picture of their customer knowing where they have been and where they are going aside from their direct interaction.   In the technical world, the concept of sharing can be seen in OpenSource software and SAAS with the sharing of platforms.  The speaker ended with a quote saying that if we want to go fast, we go alone; but, if we want to go far, we go together.

It wasn't mentioned in the presentation, but Cloud services with the sharing of resources (utilizing what is not being used elsewhere and freeing it up when not in use) also fits in with the idea of sharing.  The practice makes sense in terms of efficiency.  In essence, it's almost like multi-tasking, utilizing all cycles we can at any given time doing other things when one thing doesn't require full attention.

However, this brings up new requirements in the area of security.   With "data partnerships" and sharing, it becomes more of a challenge to maintain privacy and restrict access where needed.

Also, this concept seems to fit well with the "personality" of our society.   As reflected in social networking, we are a culture that likes to "share" openly more than interact directly in private.  There are pros and cons.