A Perfectly Cromulent Politics Blog
When procrastinating from law school, I write about politics, tech, or whatever else I'm interested in. Feel free to tweet me up (@devinjohnston).
When procrastinating from law school, I write about politics, tech, or whatever else I'm interested in. Feel free to tweet me up (@devinjohnston).
Posted by Devin Johnston on August 10th, 2009
Posted by Devin Johnston on February 1st, 2009
When I proclaimed that Facebook will be dead within three years, I cited the misguided attempt to monetize social networks through advertising as one of the reasons that the site is likely doomed. This problem is not limited to Facebook. Indeed, most centralized social network providers are based on a business model in which they mine user data in order to deliver targeted advertising to particular site visitors. Unfortunately for the businesses who are relying on this model as a primary driver for profitability, web advertising (particularly in social networks) is a weak business model. At best, online advertising can be a supplement to other revenue streams. However, smart companies will eschew advertising. Instead, they will foster goodwill with their users by delivering free and ad-free content that is mashable through open APIs.
Posted by Devin Johnston on January 21st, 2009
Following up on an earlier post in which I forecasted the death of Facebook, I would like to share my wishlist for the perfect social networking site. Although limited time and technical skill prevent me from developing it myself, I would be greatly indebted to whomever decides to take this project on (and I know that someone will eventually.) My dream social networking site does not do anything on its own. Rather, it is a portal through which I can access and interact with all of my social networks. In particular, it would work as follows:
Posted by Devin Johnston on January 19th, 2009
Has Facebook jumped the shark? Although I believe that Facebook is a valuable tool for certain communication purposes, it is difficult not to conclude that Facebook's model for what social computing should be if forward-incompatible. Although it was an early innovator in social networking, Facebook is now the anchor that resists the social web's movement toward a less centralized architecture. The harder that Facebook resists the tide, the faster it will sink. Unless Facebook drastically changes its approach to social web services (and soon), I predict that it will be dead within three years.
