I think the last point is the most important:

"6. Everybody seemed to feel the web game has shifted to the higher level. A lot appeared to feel that small publishers and sites would start to be squeezed out of the market in the coming years."

This is true, but I don't think it's completely accurate. To succeed as a small publisher, you will need to be remarkably talented and know how to efficiently market your site.

Gone are the days of lame content sites succeeding on pure bulk, like About.com. Except for Mahalo I guess.