How Steve Jobs Changed Google Plus

Anthony_Cargile writes "Everyone thinks of Google Plus as a social networking website competing with Facebook, but that is no longer the case — even Google recognizes its failure in that regard. But in a meeting with Sergey Brin and Larry Page shortly before his death, Steve Jobs gave key advice as to what direction to take their company with regards to Google Plus, as is evidenced by their controversial new 'umbrella' privacy policy that went in effect this year. Privacy advocates beware, as the problem is almost certainly worse than ever anticipated."

Re:This is what Slashdot has become?

[bky1701]

Become? You must be new here.

Re:Egos !

[Anonymous Coward]

Take a look at the article on Acxiom in today's New York Times. They do track most Americans. You are worth the effort (which is automated in any case) if you have any money to spend.

"... wrap everything around Facebook ... " ?

[Taco Cowboy]

TFA talked about Google Plus

" ... wrap everything else around Facebook and the users will cope"

Umm ...

Excuse me for being dense, I do not understand what exactly does that mean

Anyone care to explain ?

Thanks !!

Re:a certain lack of users

[LandDolphin]

To my understanding, each google website used to be individual. Now they are connected, meaning that they can track you across all of google's websites/services. So instead of multiple files about you, they have one grand file.

Re:Parallel world.

[dido]

I seem to recall that MySpace and Friendster also achieved critical mass. I think it is naive to think that Facebook will not someday be supplanted in the same way as well. The main reason why G+ is stumbling in this respect is that they don't provide anything, not even better assurances over privacy (which is something people care little enough about) that is compelling enough for people to begin to use their G+ accounts more than they use their Facebook accounts. The thing here is that social network lock-in and network effects are weaker than say, Microsoft's lock-in and network effects with Windows. In the first place, nothing really prevents me from say, using both G+ and Facebook at the same time. If G+ or some other competing social network provides something really compelling, not just to me but to large numbers of users, I'd eventually find myself using Facebook less and less, and G+ more, and at some point it'd be hard to characterize me as a "Facebook user". At this point G+ does not seem to be giving people that kind of incentive. Think back on what killed off MySpace and Friendster. Friendster I remember had problems scaling their systems to handle the increasing load, and the poor responsiveness of their site was what caused people to migrate away from them to MySpace and Facebook in the way just described. I don't quite remember what happened with MySpace, because I never did make an account there, but I believe that Facebook had a much better user experience (ads not as intrusive, easier interface, less of an ability to make garish pages, etc.), and that's what caused people to gradually migrate.

Facebook had a P/E of 88 at their IPO, which means that they'll have to increase revenue at least sixfold to live up to the expectations set by their stock price. They can't increase their userbase much more: there just aren't enough people on the planet for that. Their revenue per ad is going down, so to increase revenues they'll have to make their ads occupy more and more of their page and become more intrusive. I think doing that was part of what killed off MySpace.