Platforms | Internet Marketing Blog

Facebook apps: there's no such thing as a free audience

Facebook's success hasn't only netted its founders, early employees and investors billions of dollars, the world's largest social network has built an ecosystem that has served as the foundation for other businesses collectively worth billions.

From large social gaming companies like Zynga all the way to individual developers building Facebook apps out of their bedrooms, Facebook's launch of a development platform in 2006 proved to be a game-changer for online entrepreneurs.

by Patricio Robles 13 February 2013 15:06pm 0 comments

Pinterest changes its look. Can it do the same for social commerce?

Image sharing social platform Pinterest is currently testing a new look, granting access to a 'select few' users before rolling out changes to in the near future.

So far, so-so. Not a day passes without social sites tinkering with their layout or functionality, but given Pinterest's incredible performance in the realm of ecommerce referrals, this could be an important one.

Let's take a closer look...

by Matt Owen 29 January 2013 14:44pm 3 comments

Twitter prepping launch of advertising API: report

Last year, Facebook went public in what was one of the most highly-anticipated and, as it turned out, disastrous IPOs of all time. In the past several months, the world's largest social network has managed to convince Wall Street that it will eventually monetize its billion-plus users.

That's good news for the number two social network, Twitter. Last week, reports surfaced that global investment powerhouse BlackRock is reportedly looking to buy $80m of Twitter shares from early employees, and some believe that the company will look to go public as soon as this year.

by Patricio Robles 28 January 2013 15:31pm 1 comment

Instagram gives Twitter a taste of its own medicine

Twitter wants to be a media company, and its efforts to become one have created a lot of collateral damage.

That's not at all surprising: when the company was positioned as a communications platform with an open API, developers flocked to take advantage of the connately-flowing river of data that Twitter produces. But many of those developers, as well as companies like LinkedIn, had to be cut off as Twitter's desire to be a media company realistically requires it to control the user experience, and how its content is displayed, in consumer channels.

by Patricio Robles 05 December 2012 20:12pm 1 comment

Can Zynga wean itself off Facebook fast enough?

After a rocky start, Facebook's life as a publicly-traded company has settled down a bit. Despite healthy skepticism about its prospects in light of a $100bn valuation, its stock price has stabilised (for now) while industry observers and investors are taking stock of its actual -- not hypothetical -- business.

But one of Facebook's best friends, social gaming giant Zynga, hasn't been so fortunate. Today, its stock plunged to under $5, its lowest level since the company went public last year.

by Patricio Robles 12 June 2012 22:25pm 0 comments

Airtime: two of Silicon Valley's biggest names discover video chat

Two of Silicon Valley's biggest names. $33m in pre-launch funding. A roster of A-list celebrities ready to unveil a product to the world.

If you're thinking the year is 1999 and you're at a party in San Francisco, you're wrong. It's 2012 and the city is New York.

by Patricio Robles 06 June 2012 19:24pm 1 comment

For Flattr, mobile becomes more of a barrier, less of an opportunity

Despite all of the well-documented challenges facing organizations that are trying to take advantage of the rapid rise of mobile, mobile presents what may be one of the greatest business opportunities for many companies.

It's not hard to understand why: there are estimated to be more than 5.5bn handsets in use globally today, making the mobile phone one of the most ubiquitous devices ever.

In developed and emerging nations, a growing number of those phones are smartphones that offer always-on access to the web.

by Patricio Robles 29 May 2012 10:33am 0 comments

Can Zynga succeed as a platform?

Yesterday's announcement that it is effectively becoming a platform may be the most important yet in the short history of social gaming juggernaut Zynga.

Although it's a billion dollar company, Zynga owes much of its success to another platform - Facebook.

by Patricio Robles 02 March 2012 09:40am 0 comments

Lady Gaga-backed Backplane raises funding, goes on shopping spree

Facebook may be the world's dominant social network, but a number of high-profile investors are betting that there's room for platform players in the space.

Backplane describes itself as a "start-up uniting people around interests, affinities and movements", but it's best-known for running Lady Gaga's LittleMonsters.com, which is in private beta.

by Patricio Robles 16 February 2012 16:41pm 0 comments

I fought Facebook, and Facebook won

How can you make the most of the power of platform economics to drive success? Learn what to look for in a platform.

Last month, I wrote about my unfortunate experience with Facebook, which took it upon itself to broadcast my entire Spotify listening experience to the world, seemingly without my knowledge or permission.

This aggravated me to the point of proclaiming, quite publicly, that I was going to “commit Facebook suicide” and end my relationship with the social media behemoth. It turns out that is easier said than done.

by Chris O'Hara 12 December 2011 18:34pm 3 comments