DISQUS

Nobody down here is going to compete effectively with Twitter, but Friendfeed's very name is just *asking* to be Friendsterized. A celebrity-dominated Twitter sounds awful. I think there is a very big brand opportunity for "other Twitters" but I don't think celebrities is it.

substitution effects. that's the most dependable method for crossing the chasm. cf netflix.

great post Robert !!!

Fred,

We have our first VC presentation (ever!) this Wednesday, and I want to thank you for this insight into your mindset.

I want to assure you that the revolution has not yet begun; that social media's impact on the world through open-sourcing politics, journalism, information and commerce is still taking baby steps.

I believe social media could be just as instrumental for breaking down dictatorships as was CNN during the 80's broadcasting into Russia. I believe social media is the force that is going to fix this nation's educational deficits and render our information enterprises bulletproof. I believe that social media can augment the human brain; I believe that memes direct our behaviors, and learning to effect positive behaviors such as "taking notes" is the METANOTES mission.

Thanks for reminding the industry of the importance of values of excellence and intelligence that precede those of short-term ROI. After all, we should not be so reductionist as to pretend Google is simply a money-making machine. Google is a giant engine augmenting human intelligence; Google has had a deep impact on human beings across the globe both directly and indirectly. This is the kind of business that I believe you should continue to keep your eyes out for, Fred, and the revolution is just beginning; you ain't seen nothin' yet :)

- srini
metanotes.com

i think this is why facebook and even yahoo have played so hard to get: M&A has often meant innovation-freeze or utter demolition of the original brand (cf Jot). both ceo's obviously feel that they have some tricks up their sleeve that they want to implement before they will consider the market truly educated about what they can do as autonomous entities. it may be foolhardy, but unless you HAVE to sell out (in which case you should build it, promote it, and flip it like YouTube), it just feels wrong to do so until you've really fleshed your ideas out in your product.

Ev & Biz are absolutely certain that they are just getting started with the Twitter saga. Jaiku might have been sort of "done" as far as the lead coders were concerned. Totally different ambition sets but the bottom line is that there is no substitute for a founder's passion as far as innovation is concerned, even if it makes them turn down a truck of money. After all, Ev has already been through the Google thing, right ? He would know....

Fred, you are going to love this.... it's a PRIVATE TWITTER, basically a journal for yourself. we are betting that even heavy twitters know they would take 100 times more PRIVATE notes; most ppl are simply not that extroverted.

http://the-time-log.com -> i still have some work to do, but it is a NEW KIND OF WORD PROCESSOR. try it, you'll be hooked - especially when you connect your smartphone (no more syncing! tag everything! w00t!)

i think you'll be thrilled with our first product, which dovetails nicely into the METANOTES platform. john and i have been working under wraps for months; emery and matt are starting to kick into the mix too. June is going to be an amazing month for METANOTES INC :)

-srini

This is just about the most intelligent comment on Twitter I have ever read. Someone out there really understands twitter in the VC community, I am happy and amazed. This is going to be a massive set of businesses - almost like an open-source listserv. I wonder if Twitter has some juicy account names set up in reserve for itself... it could be like a domain-name spree... and what company wouldn't want this kind of access to its fans? (other than bad companies of course)

You might like us too (metanotes.com) :)

twitter hasn't crossed the chasm yet. a twitter pro option (with what features?) would work, but everyone-must-pay would screw it up. twitter is a growing company and its management should prioritize its eternal soul over the need to make quick ROI.

yay if it's embeddable. there are so many available segments in online video. "go up against youtube" is a mistaken premise - there is room for all. unless these companies segment, they're doomed, but segmenting online video offerings through holistic branding - piece of cake. we met several brilliant flickr folks during the web awards ceremony in austin last week. they are no slouches, flickr has a PHENOMENAL brand for video (there's even an indie film revue down in chapel hill nc called flicker - it is obvious), and every single segment that is on TV and then some could sprout its own channel. look at the wine guy. i rest my case.