Ismail Blogtalk 2008

Entrepreneurship & Social Media Salim Ismail Head of Brickhouse, Yahoo! Ex-

Background
1996: First early-stage company
2001: First startup (of my own)
2002: 2 nd startup
2005: 3 rd startup
2006: 4 th & 5 th startups
2007: Joined Yahoo to build/run Brickhouse

1 year, 3000 ideas and 4 products later….
2008: Back to Startup land

Cork – 1996-2008

Overview
Internet Infrastructure
Context for where we are today
technology underpinning
product roadmap
Data on the internet Hidden Web Event-Driven Business Models Map of the internet Social Media Web 2.0

What is Web 2.0
According to Tim O’Reilly….
Fundamentally: user participation (UGC) + XML

Other Web 2.0 Descriptors
Services (as opposed to data)
UGC (User Generated Content).. e.g. blogs
Manipulate and ‘use’ data, not just presentation
Low latency (real time)
Data aggregation
Social Networking
Examples
Flickr, Buzznet, Dabble
Wordpress, Typepad, Drupal
Eventful, Upcoming, Edgeio
YouTube, MySpace, FaceBook
Web 2.0: Consumer to Consumer

Web 2.0 Tag Cloud

Web 2.0 – Was led by Blogs
Last few years - blogs have exploded in use
With the rise of the web in the 90s, we had millions of readers, but relatively few publishers (e.g. CNN, CNet)
Now, due to the ease of publishing with blogs and other tools, we now also have millions of publishers
1m in 01/04, 10m in 01/05, 50m in 2006 and over 100m today (that’s just blogs)
A Syndication ecosystem has evolved
Ping servers, ping aggregators and blogging platforms all collaborate to disseminate RSS and Atom updates
Blogs now being ‘overtaken’
Top Bloggers: stratifying into self-publishing journalists/pundits
MySpace, FaceBook, Twitter, Bebo et al covering the rest
Has led to web 2.0 and social media

Since then… a few companies are betting on it

What makes this all tick? Syndication XML Low Latency Great UX

Overview
product roadmap
Data on the internet Business Models

Web 2.0 = Internet 3.0™ We are increasingly watching … 80s Email 90s Web Browser 00s RSS Aggregator Messaging Request Response Publish Subscribe What’s your email address? Sending What’s your Website? Searching What’s your Feed/Blog? Watching Information Exchange Patterns Evolution of the Internet

Web 2.0 = Internet 3.0
Web 2.0 = Internet 3.0
Structured Data (XML) Syndication is starting to take hold
Event-based (Publish/Subscribe)
Participatory UX = consumer to consumer
Latest wave in internet companies (MS, FB, YT…)

Internet 3.0 – The Nervous System
The internet is evolving into a complex organism
Search is the memory
Web 2.0 provides the basis for the nervous system
The key question is: “ Whenever…”

Now that we understand internet infrastructure...
product roadmap
Data on the internet Business Models Definition: Rows & Columns e.g. Word vs. XML authoring

Example: Blogs
RSS is really just a wrapper for text plus metadata plus a syndication mechanism
Atom is another, more evolved syndication spec
A typical blog
Post contains an
opinion or
specific
Information
(in text)

The Internet is largely ‘hidden’ data
Unstructured information (Visible Web)
HTML and text oriented
Search-engine crawlable
Difficult to analyze
Structured information (Hidden Web)
XML, structured information (auctions, tickets, cars, jobs)
Lives mostly in walled gardens (eBay, Monster…)
Not easily available to search engines
Much of that can be syndicated
The hidden Web is 400-500x larger than the visible one VISIBLE WEB HIDDEN WEB Source: Crawling the Hidden Web Sriram Raghavan, Hector Garcia-Molina

Types of Structured Content Web 1.0 Autotrader eBay Monster Craigslist Lexis Nexis Online Media Web 2.0 Wordpress TripAdvisor Dabble “ Fire Eagle” SkyDeck SafariU Zillow Tripit Zimbra .. .. ..

The old world (hidden web)
Before
User fills form site stores data users search site
craigslist

The new world
After
User fills form (publish) data is syndicated users get updates
Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process

Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Internet Information Flows Open Syndication or Branding Pings Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Walled Garden DBs

Blogs Aggregators RSS Feeds Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Internet Information Flows Pings Open Syndication or Branding craigslist Closed Syndication or Branding Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Walled Gardens

Recent Products
Who do I know (Social Networks) :
Flickr, Upcoming, FaceBook, MySpace, Bebo
What am I doing (status updaters) :
Twitter, Pownce, Skype, FB
Where am I (location brokers)
Fire Eagle, Plazes,
Loopt
Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Walled Garden DBs Open Syndication or Branding Pings Social Networks Mini Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Social Networks (email)

Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Internet Information Flows Open Syndication or Branding Pings Social Networks Mini Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Social Networks (email) Walled Garden DBs craigslist

Types of Structured Content Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Walled Garden DBs Open Syndication or Branding Pings Social Networks Mini Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Social Networks (email) 80s Email 90s Web Browser 00s RSS Aggregator Messaging Request Response Publish Subscribe What’s your email address? Sending What’s your Website? Searching What’s your Feed/Blog? Watching Information Exchange Patterns Evolution of the Internet

Business Models – Internet 3.0 Publish (syndicate) Blogs Photos Video CGM Subscribe RSS readers Cell phones Web Clients Aggregate Search Engines Social Networks Vertical Search Tagging Aggregators

Types of Structured Content Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Walled Garden DBs Open Syndication or Branding Pings Social Networks Mini Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Social Networks (email)

Business Models Users/Advertising Subscriptions Data Mining

Internet Entrepreneurship
It’s a numbers game
“ You have to do everything right, and THEN get very lucky”
Market timing
Too early is worse than too late
Team, Team, Team
Focus, then Execute
Never give up
stick around long enough…

Dynamics of starting a company today
Low barrier to entry
Virality is key
Lots of competition
Focus on service rather than data

Dynamics of Revenue Streams
Advertising
User base (you need a lot of them)
Behavioural targeting
Social profiling
Data Mining
Aggregate information on large sets of users
E.g. Rapleaf, Spock, Wink, Google, Fire Eagle
Subscriptions
Typically for enterprise or prosumer use

Tensions to be navigated
How dodgy are you willing/able to be… ?
Customer acquisition & monetization
Spam factor
When to take in revenue
When to launch
Don’t be a perfectionisht

Thoughts on Social Media
Computers are binary
80/20 rule
Leverage with other types of information

Types of Structured Content Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Aggregators Blogs RSS Readers RSS Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Open Syndication or Branding Pings Social Networks Mini Feeds Closed Syndication or Branding Social Networks (email) Walled Garden DBs

Key Drivers of Value Syndication XML Low Latency Great UX Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML

Back to blogs
RSS is really just a wrapper for text plus metadata plus a syndication mechanism
Atom is another, more evolved syndication spec
A typical blog
post today
contains an
opinion or
specific
Information
(in text)

There’s over a trillion XML documents
Unstructured information (Visible Web)
HTML and text oriented
Search-engine crawlable
Difficult to analyze
Structured information (Hidden Web)
XML, structured information (auctions, tickets, cars, jobs)
Lives mostly in walled gardens (eBay, Monster…)
Not easily available to search engines
Much of that can be syndicated
The hidden Web is 400-500x larger than the visible one VISIBLE WEB HIDDEN WEB Source: Crawling the Hidden Web Sriram Raghavan, Hector Garcia-Molina

Steps for building a business
Pick a domain you’re passionate about
Travel, sports, entertainment, business….
Pick a type of data that can to be leveraged on the internet
Location, social information, structured data, live info
Select one of the drivers of value creation
Position yourself for risk
Jump in with both feet
Gov’t Data Enterprise Data E-commerce Transactional data (reviews/ratings) (offers for sale) (events) Self-publishing (where am I) (what am I doing) SN Profiles Blogs (about me) HTML Syndication XML Low Latency Great UX

And if it doesn’t work….
Pick yourself up..
Dust yourself off…
Get a new T-shirt…
Start again…

Blogs Aggregators RSS Feeds Browsers Web Pages Search Engines Internet Information Flows Closed Syndication or Branding Pings Open Syndication or Branding craigslist Create/Publish/Discover Syndicate/Aggregate Read/Consume/Process Web 2.0 Web 1.0 Walled Gardens

Ismail Blogtalk 2008

by Blogtalk 2008 on Mar 03, 2008

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Ismail Blogtalk 2008 — Presentation Transcript