Social Media

The social media world forum took place in my home town of Cape Town this week.  Some interesting speakers,  interesting people, and some Angry Birds.

So...Social Media....the new industry buzz words. Definition "Social media are media for social interaction, using highly accessible and scalable communication techniques. Social media is the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue."
Is it really the new frontier for business to plough huge sums of cash to gain market recognition, or is it just the "tupperware party" of our current generation?
Linked doubling its share price on opening day...Facebook worth billions...there is obviously value in being able to reach your clientèle now that we all so closely connected.  However, as a Corporate...how would you measure the the value-add?  Could spending large sums having your business open to these new frontiers directly translate to profits?