This is part 3 in a series of post about what’s going to be on the agenda for 2009. Today, I’m talking about the how the financial turmoil changes the web landscape during the coming year.

The year is starting slow, and it’s going to be anything but white hot. The financial difficulties is going to throw many decent companies into despondency and we’re certainly going to loose some of them. In some cases it’s going to be a much needed weeding out of sub par services, in others it’s going to be a sad loss. Consolidation will be the word, and a lot of invested time is going to change hands.

More notably, is that when people have less money to spend, they’re going to be more picky about where they spend it. It’s anything from big to small – I’ll probably cancel either my Spotify or my Raphsody account. Maybe I’ll stick to one morning newspaper instead of two. Nothing big unless drastic actions are required, but my small stuff is the entire business of some companies.

When I consider the implications of this depression on Interaction Design in products and services, I can’t help but feel positive. Increasingly, it’s going to be the decisive factor when user decides what to let go of. Feeling good about the brand, and having a good user experience is going to be important when the choice suddenly becomes limited. Value for money, or time, transcends content mass or user base in 2009.

Mediocre services and devices are going to fall hard this year. Those who try to be everything for everyone are going to be losers and those who specialize and focus their offerings and interfaces are going to be winners.

Footnote: Om Malik wants to say goodbye to mediocrity, focusing on bad talent and bail-out plans. It’s a nice rant & call to action. I’m all for it.

[...] companies that are in survival mode don’t do anything that would make them go from being mediocre to being great — because they are too busy just surviving.

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All posts in my series of predictions for 2009;

1. I Want my Package Now, Right Now
2. We Start to Notice our Observers
3. We Depart from Mediocrity
4. Free is the Magic Number
5. Attention Control is the new Work Ethic