Great post on China Vortext regarding the Facebook Beacon service:
China Vortex: Facebook’s Beacon and Valuing Social Networks
Let me put it this way, I don’t think that there is a way to value social networks, even though this is what advertisers would very much like to see happen. And the reason that social networks cannot be valued in a top-down/corporate/advertising way is because they are entirely subjective and dynamic according to each individual at any given moment in time.
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That is why it doesn’t matter if Facebook owns all my data; if I no longer go there, it’s dead, out-of-date data. My data is only valuable as long as I’m active there.
Paul goes on to relay a system that he believes (and I agree) would add value for businesses, while creating a more opt-in-get-paid system for users. Will Facebook and its ilk ever get on board? Or will they try to milk their free user base for as long as they can.
Personally, I think Facebook is going to go down harder and faster than a MySpace made of lead – but that’s another post.
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