What is this world coming to?  Imagine having a Virtual Association? Or a Virtual CES?  Or a Virtual Woodstock?    Or a virtual sit in in Washington, D.C. after Obama is elected?  Well it is here now and it will be here in a lot more forms in the next couple of years.  While "social media" is basically a 2 D bulletin board system with lots of bells and whistles this virtual association and virtual trade show industry is going to lead the way.  Some people use the Second Life platform after the California Company or some people are using the open source Active Worlds platform.

"I think there will be a full spectrum of different models encompassing what we have today, ideas that are starting to emerge, and totally new concepts that have yet to be seen anywhere. I think we will see dramatic growth in virtual associations, where the members come together via the web and all service delivery is done electronically; there may be nominal fees but the bulk of revenues will come from users paying for whatever they want to buy from their community."  These trends are profiled in detail in the book Designing Your Future. Rohit Talwar, president of Fast Future Research