Comments on: Serving the social graph and keeping the lights on: What Facebook and MySpace have in common with the power company http://hayesdavis.net/2008/05/21/serving-the-social-graph-and-keeping-the-lights-on-what-facebook-and-myspace-have-in-common-with-the-power-company/ Wed, 25 Aug 2010 00:17:12 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Hayes http://hayesdavis.net/2008/05/21/serving-the-social-graph-and-keeping-the-lights-on-what-facebook-and-myspace-have-in-common-with-the-power-company/comment-page-1/#comment-4 Hayes Wed, 21 May 2008 16:40:48 +0000 http://hayesdavis.net/blog/?p=10#comment-4 kevinc: Point taken re: being sold things. However, it depends on how you define "additional value". People have obviously taken to the idea that they can have worthwhile software-mediated interactions with a network of friends. The problem is that up until now, those interactions have been defined largely by the same companies that are providing the underlying social data. We're pretty much in a stage of "renting the phone from AT&T" when it comes to social networking. I think by default with data portability, these networks increasingly become the utility and we "buy the phone" (or modem, or computer) from someone else. When any endpoint is allowed to connect into these networks, it's hard to say what sort of value will follow. kevinc: Point taken re: being sold things. However, it depends on how you define “additional value”. People have obviously taken to the idea that they can have worthwhile software-mediated interactions with a network of friends. The problem is that up until now, those interactions have been defined largely by the same companies that are providing the underlying social data. We’re pretty much in a stage of “renting the phone from AT&T” when it comes to social networking. I think by default with data portability, these networks increasingly become the utility and we “buy the phone” (or modem, or computer) from someone else. When any endpoint is allowed to connect into these networks, it’s hard to say what sort of value will follow.

]]> By: kevinc http://hayesdavis.net/2008/05/21/serving-the-social-graph-and-keeping-the-lights-on-what-facebook-and-myspace-have-in-common-with-the-power-company/comment-page-1/#comment-3 kevinc Wed, 21 May 2008 16:18:09 +0000 http://hayesdavis.net/blog/?p=10#comment-3 How many users are really looking to get additional value from their social networks? Aren't they really just looking to do social stuff? It seems to me that you have to upsell the additional value. Twitter, for instance, is a pure social network with no real frills. People flock to it, or don't, based on the core functionality. I think Facebook is pretty much the same, even though it has more to offer if you opt in. Facebook won't be a "utility" until its users start thinking of it that way. I need power, water, and internet to do things I care about. I need social networking ... to be sold things? In other words there's a reason it's called "face book" and it has nothing to do with the utility aspect. How many users are really looking to get additional value from their social networks? Aren’t they really just looking to do social stuff? It seems to me that you have to upsell the additional value.

Twitter, for instance, is a pure social network with no real frills. People flock to it, or don’t, based on the core functionality. I think Facebook is pretty much the same, even though it has more to offer if you opt in.

Facebook won’t be a “utility” until its users start thinking of it that way. I need power, water, and internet to do things I care about. I need social networking … to be sold things? In other words there’s a reason it’s called “face book” and it has nothing to do with the utility aspect.

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