March 31, 2010 - 11:16 am
FOur quick observations:
1. Take a page from a color magazine and fold it until the screen is the size of the screen on an iPhone. Do you think a magazine this size would be as compelling an experience?
2. Think of the iPad as an attack on the education market. No more heavy backpacks, 10 hours of battery.
3. Think of the iPad as the un-computer (no mouse, and keyboard optional for 95% of uses) – ideal for kids, grandparents, and the rest of us.
4. Thank you gene Roddenberry.
March 28, 2010 - 9:46 am
[Okay, this post refers to a portfolio company, and hopefully is not seen as a shameless plug]
During the due diligence for a recent investment in Klout by my fund, ff Asset Management, we have been thinking about online identity and reputation and trying to understand what is changing here. Recent posts by Fred Wilson and other are scratching at the surface. It is clear to me that something changed with the mass adoption of Facebook, LinkedIn and other real-name social networks. Facebook Connect has further extended it to the non-social web. People moved from being anonymous to leaving real footprints on the web. People are no longer hiding behind “anonymous” or “cutiebear107@aol.com” but are leaving traceable marks as to what they think, who they know, who thinks what they have to say is important.
This real-name web will lead to a host of services that connect-the-dots and help manage their identity, reputation and influence. We are moving from the Internet of idea to the Internet of things to the Internet of people. Clearly privacy, gossip, reputation, influence, trust, all are relevant here.
We invested in Klout as they are working on the influence aspect of the influence of people. They people-rank tweets real-time and give people, for the first time, a measure of their influence on the web. Fred Wilson has a Klout Score of 70, I have one of 12 - so you can clearly see who carries more weight on the web!
Over time we think that people will want to know who they are dealing with on the web in a simple manner, knowing their influence and their reputation. In the same manner there will be companies that will work to help people manage them. This is an evolving space and one which will be of increasing interest to venture capitalists and the media at large. Thank you Facebook. Thank you LinkedIn.
