Ted's Take

This is a perfectly posited article and thesis. Sad but true.

Are we really close friends? Will I tell you what I tell my closest friends knowing all of this will end up - forever - on the web? And in Google’s search algorithms? So some venture backed company can generate clicks to turn pixels into gold?

Can Facebook really make a business around “friendship” and “community”? We really tried at AOL in the old days but instant messaging was such an intimate one-on-one bit of self expression that no one supported ads. And then chat rooms were tough to monetize, too. Who knew what was being said and by whom in chat rooms? Email, guess what we got? Ads in the bottom of email forms and bad sig files. This is tough to make a business around that feels good to the consumer and the advertiser.

Is Facebook a utility?

Is it a fun place to hang out?

Is it a media company?

A platform and for whom?

Julia is right. Facebook has become something new and different. This weekend while I have time, I will drill down on the privacy settings and have to make some tough calls. Do I want to use Facebook as a publishing platform and really look at my 5,000 friends as an audience or do I fool myself into thinking Facebook really is like Cheers, a place where I like to hang out and meet up and mingle and chat with my buddies?

I thought this article was very poignant, smart and thought provoking.