Last month, some 2,000 net-heads crammed into one of the most fashionable clubs in London for a Millennium party and networking binge. Hosted by First Tuesday, and sponsored by internet-related companies like Credo Consulting, it was a testimony to the rapid growth of the internet culture in the UK.
Launched a little more than a year ago, First Tuesday's inaugural bash was attended by just a handful of people. Since then, dozens of other groups have set up in the UK and across Europe, imitating developments in the US two years ago. Some are corporate-inspired, others founded by individuals who just want to provide a forum.
First Tuesday describes its operation as "talent meets money plus all the professional services necessary to get it off the ground". But because the events are now so large, they have become a victim of their own success.
There is no longer the community feel that originally made them popular, but now many smaller networking communities have sprung up.
The Clerkenwell Social is a village-specific offshoot whose mailing list is smaller than the number of revellers attending its monthly events.
Guests are encouraged to email pals, provided they work in the area. It was started by Guardian Unlimited, the newspaper's new-media posse, which saw potential in exploiting its increasingly wired manor. More informal than some of the other groups, the focus is on drinking and getting to know people.
Digital Futures is similarly sociable - less a 30-second card swap than an informal drink and get together for people who are in the industry for the long haul, not just to make a quick buck.
DF is planning to move into the sphere of conferences and discussions about specific issues, like how to persuade old-fashioned corporates to embrace e-business. Meanwhile, typical party guests include smaller. coms, consultants and techies.
In contrast, the Way North group is aimed at the interactive TV industry - people using streaming media and net-workers. The European Technology Forum is for the new blue chips like Cisco and Oracle. Chief executives as well as VPs and VCs are expected, British or pan-European.
The Ecademy calls itself the first independent education portal for e-commerce, and Skip Intro, launched by the Oyster web design house, got off to a promising start in a dodgy part of King's Cross. The main purpose of these events? To get us out from behind our screens.
Nick Rosen is a director of The Online Research Agency, a market research company focused on the internet. Email: nick@online-agency. com or tel: 0797 1543703.
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Last month, some 2,000 net-heads crammed into one of the most fashionable clubs in London for a Millennium party and networking binge. Hosted by First Tuesday, and sponsored by internet-related companies like Credo Consulting, it was a testimony to the rapid growth of the internet culture in the UK.
Launched a little more than a year ago, First Tuesday's inaugural bash was attended by just a handful of people. Since then, dozens of other groups have set up in the UK and across Europe, imitating developments in the US two years ago. Some are corporate-inspired, others founded by individuals who just want to provide a forum.
First Tuesday describes its operation as "talent meets money plus all the professional services necessary to get it off the ground". But because the events are now so large, they have become a victim of their own success.
There is no longer the community feel that originally made them popular, but now many smaller networking communities have sprung up.
The Clerkenwell Social is a village-specific offshoot whose mailing list is smaller than the number of revellers attending its monthly events.
Guests are encouraged to email pals, provided they work in the area. It was started by Guardian Unlimited, the newspaper's new-media posse, which saw potential in exploiting its increasingly wired manor. More informal than some of the other groups, the focus is on drinking and getting to know people.
Digital Futures is similarly sociable - less a 30-second card swap than an informal drink and get together for people who are in the industry for the long haul, not just to make a quick buck.
DF is planning to move into the sphere of conferences and discussions about specific issues, like how to persuade old-fashioned corporates to embrace e-business. Meanwhile, typical party guests include smaller. coms, consultants and techies.
In contrast, the Way North group is aimed at the interactive TV industry - people using streaming media and net-workers. The European Technology Forum is for the new blue chips like Cisco and Oracle. Chief executives as well as VPs and VCs are expected, British or pan-European.
The Ecademy calls itself the first independent education portal for e-commerce, and Skip Intro, launched by the Oyster web design house, got off to a promising start in a dodgy part of King's Cross. The main purpose of these events? To get us out from behind our screens.
Nick Rosen is a director of The Online Research Agency, a market research company focused on the internet. Email: nick@online-agency. com or tel: 0797 1543703.
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