Within five years time technology will redefine the way we work, play and even live as the ripples it creates start to be felt by every business and individual around the world.

"Already, the Web provides a central exchange for many people, from checking the news to finding out which books to read or which wines to drink," said Graham Brant, General Manager of Microsoft Hong Kong.

Sharing his personal perspective with members at the Chamber’s Nov. 25 roundtable luncheon entitled "Microsoft and Hong Kong," Mr Brant believes that in this increasingly technology-driven world, the Internet will be the locomotive for change as more people move towards a Web lifestyle.

Previously the domain of "Techies," this lifestyle is now starting to encompass society in general as Internet access is now starting to encompass smaller devices such as phones and PDAs.

Portal sites have capitalised on this trend, but as millions of portals are springing up on the Web, the concept of "portal" loses its relevance, Mr Brant said. The future, he believes, is in personalising each individual’s Web experience.

In the not too distant future, Web sites will know who we are, where we come from, our preferences, and maybe even what we had for breakfast. Microsoft has already started dabbling in such technology. No two experiences that its 20 million subscribers enjoy daily at the site will be the same, he said. "Each visitor has a unique experience," Mr Brant said.

Other sites also offer personalised experiences. You can customise which news your read or receive only "happy" information if you are in need of cheering up. But this is just the start of how personalisation on the Internet will change our lives.

"If you want a bank loan for example, it’s not a question of you going to several different banks and trying to figure out which one is best," he said. "You will end up with a concept that runs on your machine with ‘myfinance.com,’ or something like that, and the banks will actually come to you."

Software is the key that will make all this possible. But we mustn’t forget people, because it is people, not technology, that is driving these advances, he said.

The government and private investors will also play a leading role in laying the necessary infrastructure.

Hong Kong is already one of the world’s leaders in terms of broadband capacity. Moreover, the territory is relatively technology literate and about 45 per cent of homes have a PC, which is even slightly higher than the U.S. These factors put Hong Kong in an ideal position to develop into a wired society, he said.

"In five years time I don’t think people will be looking at broadcast television anymore; it dies with broadband Internet," he said. "Why? Why should you be at the mercy of programme people who decide when you should watch a programme?"

If Hong Kong can get its broadband wired society together quickly, which Mr Brant said he believes it can, then deregulation of the broadcast industry can make Hong Kong a world leader in the whole concept of interactive television.

Huge profits await companies that seize the opportunities that these developments present. Courier services, for example, are cashing in by delivering the goods that millions of people buy through the Web every day.

But just as traditional industries will have to rethink their strategies, so too will regulations have to be rewritten.

One such conundrum is taxation. As the world becomes one giant supermarket with people ordering everything from groceries to the latest electronics off the Web, the question of taxation arises. Who should charge tax? The state which took your order? The states which your goods passed through? The country which receives your goods? Or all three?