Comments on: why microsoft should buy facebook

By: kris Fuehr

kris Fuehr — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 12:36:33 +0000

Another good ponderance, Hugh. The businesses that companies like Google, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr all have in common is that they enable a transaction that is done in an instant and can be enveloped by another, broader transaction. I’m not sure that FB is such an attraction when the value is becoming commodity — to enable people to post and share is only attractive until the next post/share + ____ comes to market. Fickle is the web audience.
The switching cost is SO low for most cloud services that if a better algorithm comes their way, poof, they run the risk of oblivion.
I think to truly survive long term, FB would need to connect with a company who has a higher switching cost (which, you may be right, could be Microsoft) but I think FB will be nothing but a feature embedded into a larger schema someplace else. Any speculation as to where?
–Kris

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 05:08:37 +0000

On the other hand, if this was a ploy to find a good Vietnamese restaurant in Phoenix because you are coming here thendrop me a line. I’ll tell you my personal favorite.

By: Groups

Groups — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 04:47:28 +0000

hi, what is this for a picture. its not a beautyfull picture

By: Ed Brenegar

Ed Brenegar — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 02:49:49 +0000

It may be smart for MicroSoft to buy FaceBook. It would also be smart for Google to add a search category for FaceBook.
When I planned our family’s Scotland try this summer, I used Google to look for lodging. The approach the proprietor took in the design of the look and content of their website was the differentiator. I also used Google maps & Google earth, Mapquest, local history sites, and whatever else I could find. Since I wasn’t on Facebook at that point, it didn’t factor in. But it could have.
However, now, if I can get multiple streams of different types of content, then I have a better idea what I’m seeing, whether from the algorithms or personal recommendation.

By: Xavier

Xavier — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 16:30:28 +0000

Hugh, talking of social tool, I think you got bitten by the quechup sting. I got an invite from you to join them.
Was flattered but surprised as my email address (same as this one, mac.com domain) was only in your books as part of an ol stormhoek campaign, so after googling (yeah, google again) I did not sign in of course, and hope you won’t get too much hassle from this. (basically, quechup offers to check your address books for people on quechup, but does spam-invite all the others without clearlys stating it…)
Guys, avoid quechup, they are getting quite a backlash around the web…
Do we need another facebook /linkedin/ friendster/ myspace/ smallworld/thingie? (Didn’t know we needed the originals in the first place, but then that is me and my misanthropy)

By: Mohd. Hashim Khan

Mohd. Hashim Khan — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 02:13:31 +0000

Big daddys buying small companies humm.. I never like this idea and always feel bad when see brands changing because they were bought by someone else.

By: Deepak

Deepak — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 03:51:23 +0000

People are looking in the wrong place. The answer to people powered search is Lijit.
You upload your trusted network into Lijit (del.icio.us network, blogroll, etc). Default search is across your network and their connections. That pretty much defines tacit trust in my eyes. It combines algorithms and people quite nicely.

By: Robert McIntosh

Robert McIntosh — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 23:33:00 +0000

I don’t believe it is an either/or situation. Recommendation alone is not scaleable to the point of replacing the google like search activities.
However, an algorithm that incopororated human interaction on facebook (e.g. recommendations on restaurants to ‘friends’ added together to create a meta-rating) would be very powerful.
It wouldn’t be spam-proof, but would be interesting.

By: Nick D

Nick D — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 23:18:16 +0000

Not gonna happen. Not that the Mac vs. PC debate is all that relevant anymore, but Facebook is a Mac shop, with key former Apple employees. I really think these guys could not bear to watch MS stop all over the Facebook design and strategy aesthetic. Facebook is the anti Microsoft. It would be a real shame and a setback to the industry if this were to happen. Do you think that the Microsoft could inject the Facebook aesthetic across the organization? That might be a nice thought, but as a user I would not want them to take that risk.

By: alan p

alan p — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 20:26:59 +0000

Speaking of aerodynamics at low Reynolds numbers.…
As to MSFT buying FB.….what was the price ask… $5bn? The build case must be very compelling at that level.….

By: peaky

peaky — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 17:20:41 +0000

very true — it a lot harder to game people/users who are the customers than the ‘system’, now if this could synch in with my mobile phone and provide real time comments about things I’m interested in as I go past them via GPS…tick tick
cheers from the Cally Road, London

By: Fenmere, the Worm

Fenmere, the Worm — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 09:59:59 +0000

If you are visiting Bellingham, WA and you would like some honest recommendations from enthusiastic locals, you could not go far wrong with hopping on LiveJournal and posting to the bham community. Mind you, along with a couple really easy to spot and good responses to your question, you'll also get some advice for finding a dentist for your cat along with a tablespoon of snark. But that's just part of the fun! My point is, as questionable as LiveJournal looks, it is already providing this level of service all over! And people already take advantage of it. Just, no one's really talking about it.

By: Karl Long

Karl Long — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 05:16:03 +0000

No kidding George, although it’s still a very bay area resource, but IMHO they have solved the problem of local information, whether it’s an ear doctor or a bar, they have an amazing depth of information. The difference between yelp and facebook is that the yelp community is incented to be productive, to create reviews, and build yelp as a resource. Facebook on the other hand does not focus on encouraging it’s users to create intelectual capital.

By: George

George — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 00:37:04 +0000

what about yelp?

By: Kevin Behringer

Kevin Behringer — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 22:52:27 +0000

Hugh:
I think this ultimately comes down to human nature…as your post captures. If I am looking for anything — restaurant, technology purchase, etc I try to find someone I know/trust who has already done it and can give their opinion or recommendation.
While search is great and it has opened up our options for the way we buy enormously, I think it sometimes suffers from the same skepticism that many feel toward advertising. I know when I search for something I skim right past ANYTHING that looks like it is from the manufacturer or a store to find something from a person. A blog post is usually the goal here.
I agree with CC that Facebook may not be the vehicle for this, but a more social version of Epinions is ultimately the goal or a “post for recommendations” section of another site. Something that opens it up to people that may not have quite the network that you do, but still need the recommendation.
Thanks for the post. Thought provoking as always!
Kevin