Photo sharing Web 2.0 style

In previous weeks, I introduced several Web 2.0 companies in Hong Kong. It so happens that they all used AJAX-based architectures for their sites. But AJAX is not the only architecture available for Web 2.0. For instance, there are a growing number of sites using Adobe Flex and the new Apollo software. Flex and AJAX both supports RIA but in different ways; Flex clients use Flash while AJAX clients use JavaScript. In addition, Apollo provides an added advantage--it allows Web applications to run both online and offline as desktop applications.

This week, I introduce a Web 2.0 company in Hong Kong that builds its business on top of Adobe technologies. Web 2.0 is often characterized as highly interactive software that makes sharing and collaborating easy and fun. Fotobay is definitely one such company. "The coolest way to show off your digital photos online" is their company slogan. Their photo album platform is definitely the coolest that I've seen so far.

Besides cool album interactions, fotobay makes it really easy to add pizzazz to photos themselves. Their library of "Cool Objects" allows anyone to quickly attach text, animations, interactions, or music to create personalized photos and make them fun. Their "Calypso" technology allows its user community to create and share their own "Cool Objects" as well.

Adding photo albums to blogs is just as easy with fotobay's "Cool Album Anywhere" technology. Viewing thumbnails and flipping through photos is lightening fast with fotobay's "smart pre-loading" technology.

Besides acting as a photo platform for users, fotobay also offers its technology to other companies to power their marketing campaigns. For example, just last year the Hong Kong Tourist Board organized a Discovery Hong Kong E-invite Competition using fotobay (click here to see winning entries). The "Cool Print" service offered by Fotomax in Hong Kong also runs on top of fotobay technology.

Fotobay definitely has the "play" factor that is important for Web 2.0.