Social Media - the new paradigm of collaboration and communication for business environment

We are currently witnessing a phenomenon of constant and quick growth in the use of the Internet for communication and collaboration between people. The 2.0 version of World Wide Web has become the medium for collaborative projects, blogs and microblogs, virtual communities, socializing networks, group games - all united under the so called, "Social Media" concept. The high level of use and interaction of Social Media influences greatly the business environment which is thus exposed to a paradigm shift, where hierarchies fall apart and the communication and colaboration create wider and wider networks for the employees and all the partners of the organisations. In this spirit, the purpose of this article is to briefly review the impact of the Social Media on business, based on the analysis of the relevant literature in the field. There is mentioned the creation of virtual proximities which rely on the transfer of knowledge, production of positive network externalities, increase of business information capital as well as the social and ethical implications related to Social Media. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.