Presentation given by Mark Suster at Caltech in October 2010. The topic was: "Social Networking: Past, Present & Future"

1. Social Networking
Past, Present, Future
Mark Suster
Caltech MIT Enterprise Forum
October 9, 2010
@msuster
www.BothSidesofTheTable.com

2. Where Did Social Networking Start?

3. In our debates we tend to focus too much on
technology

4. It’s about shared experiences & we’ve
replicated this online

5. It’s about meeting people &
communicated with those we know

6. Online social networks mirror offline lives

7. It’s about the 6 C’s
 Communications
 Connectedness
 Common Experience
 Content
 Commerce
 Cool Experiences (ok, entertainment ;-)

8. It’s why
Becomes

9. It’s why
Becomes

10. Pre Internet had social networks

11. Pre Internet had social networks

12. Anyone around then will know what one
of these was

13. AOL bridges gap between pre-Internet & Internet

14. People advertised “AOL Keywords” not websites
AOL Keyword:
Swordfish

15. Web 1.0 made it easier to have personal pages
on “the web” (e.g. not AOL)

16. And “groups” have been around for ages
 Mothers’ clubs
 Church groups
 Education

17. Social networks have been around for a long time.
 Usability is better.
 3rd
-party platforms.
 More people are connected.
But same old shit.

18. And then spam-based social networks began

19. Mostly for professional use / older demo

20. And it was really about extending your
network

21. Web 2.0 was born and we evolved online
social expression

22. Web 2.0 was born - social contribution
Blogging Photos Video

23. Web 2.0 went social - skewed back to youth

24.  Teenage
 Middle America
 Scantily Dressed
 Design chaos
 Ads galore
 Not verified
 Teenage
 Middle America
 Scantily Dressed
 Design chaos
 Ads galore
 Not verified
 Up market
 University
 Exclusive
 Urban elite
 Clean
 Ad free
 Verified
 Up market
 University
 Exclusive
 Urban elite
 Clean
 Ad free
 Verified
Facebook launched. Was exclusive

25. It started as .edu

26. And they captured the tech elite

27. They each captured 100m users, who
increasingly wanted to share photos / video

28. MySpace Bought PhotoBucket & Google Bought
YouTube
And MySpace declared war
on developers

29. And this guy (22)
Schooled this guy (75)

30. He understood software business was
different than media business

31. Within a SINGLE YEAR the game was over

32. And Facebook went mainstream

33. And then some !!!

34. And we’re back to advertising non-web pages
Brands are spending big & abandoning web
pages

35. Social networking then went “open”
 Asymmetric
 Public

36. Twitter really is a totally new concept
 Marketing channel
 RSS reader
 Instant messaging
 Chat Room
 Data mine
 Customer service Dept

37. And perhaps “open” went a bit too far
Social Spending

38. I think we all know that social is going mobile

39. And people are building platforms to enable this
Business Logic
Mapping Layer
Points of Interest

40. OK, OK
But Where are Things
Headed Next?

41. 1. Social Graph Becomes Portable

42. 2. We Form Around True Networks
FriendsFriends FamilyFamily
Business
Associates
Business
Associates
Areas of
Interest
Areas of
Interest
NetworkingNetworking DatingDating

43. 2. We Form Around True Networks
FriendsFriends
FamilyFamily
Business
Associates
Business
Associates
Areas of
Interest
Areas of
Interest
NetworkingNetworking
DatingDating
“ I’m coming home for Thanksgiving”
“ Check out how wasted we were ;-)”
“ Why did you choose MongoDB?”
“ I can’t believe we’re working again this weekend ”
“ I love The Decemberists, too!”
“I’m looking for a role as a Director”

44. It’s ridiculous that these are all combined
today

45. Example: Quora

46. Example: HackerNews

47. 3. Privacy becomes a bigger concern
3rd
Party
App
You
Your Friend
Pictures of your Kids
Personal Info
Date of Birth

48. 3. Privacy becomes a bigger concern
3rd
Party Apps
Can Access
@ messages
DMs
(private)
Tweets

49. 4. Social Networking Becoming Pervasive

50. So advertising & content curation are
instantly more targetable
But most websites don’t know what to do
beyond this

51. 5. Third Party Tools (e.g. Meebo Toolbar) Will
Bring Social Networks to Websites
Twitter /
Facebook
Chat

52. 5. But Also Bring Social “Features” like sharing

53. 6. Social Networking Will Split into Layers
Business Logic
EC2
S3
Mgmt Tools
Mapping Layers
Network Layers
Social Graph / Features
Open Source Data
Totally New
Opportunities

54. 7. Social chaos creates new markets
Social
Support
Social SFA
Social
Analytics
Personal
Relationship
Mgmt
Reputation
Mgmt /
Authority
Social
Marketing

55. Fuck “Check Ins & Badges”
Skate Where the Puck is Going

56. The definition of social networking will cease
to exist in the way that we seldom think
about Internet companies

57. And for those who wonder if Facebook now IS
the Internet, remember ….

58. Plus ça change
April 2000
Jan 1998
May 2007

59. It’s why Zuckerberg remains paranoid
And why there’s still a dream for those of
you who work hard & innovate

60. Social Networking
Past, Present, Future
Thank you