A reporter asked us today if we thought the hyperbole about Twitter was similar to the old Second Life bubble -- which drew gobs of advertisers who couldn't seem to fit in. We answered logically that the models differ; Twitter will last longer because it has broader and more flexible communications utility, creating more loyal users but similar antipathy toward third-party marketers. Sure, there are gimmicks, like the follower/following motif that provides a game-like reward mechanism. (1,000! Score!) But there is no doubt Twitter is becoming a new advertiser-free communications ecosystem.
Then Twitter went down tonight and we got pissed. Silly us. Twitter works simply because we need self-expression.
Image via Kelpenhagen.
1 comments:
Twitter has far surpassed Second Life in daily utility. Second Life had a lot of hype but never materialized into the social platform that was intended. Twitter is already concretely filling gaps in communication and doing it well.
It's service up-time, although annoying, doesn't really disprove the model.
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