While most of these file sharing services are focusing on employee - employee - customer/partner collaboration and replacing the SharePoint UI with a simple folder UI, SkyDox just took a “Scribd” approach and built a public portal on top of SP with MS FAST search integrated.

So it certainly is feasible for the file sharing vendors to move beyond knowledge worker collaboration and move into content portals as well. Lowering price as an entry barrier to traditional content management systems has not spurred widespread adoption by knowledge workers. Like it or not, the content management metaphor does not resonate like the folder metaphor does with knowledge workers. Witness in any major firm how end users continue to nest folders in folders in folders in SharePoint document libraries instead of using metadata for filters, sorts and groups in custom views. But SharePoint still has a role, albeit one hidden further back in the stack, not directly exposed to the average end user.

But will Apple’s content storage metaphor of “it’s just there when you need it with every application” (iCoud) make entry roads into the enterprise as well? I doubt it, at least not while the current file-folder generations are still in the workplace. But maybe after today’s 20-somethings take over the workplace in 10-20 years?