Like almost everything else these days, the so-called “sunsetting” of G+ all comes down to the bottom line:
Like almost everything else these days, the so-called “sunsetting” of G+ all comes down to the bottom line:
In a rat-race to the bottom line the winner will surely be- a rat.
But with the demise of G+ there will only be losers: millions of us Plussers, who will be unceremoniously thrown overboard and cast adrift into cyberspace in April without any instructions yet about how to save our data or how to export it to another platform. I've forged some very important friendships there, and the thought of losing contact is utterly depressing. Given all the work and enthusiasm Google employees put into G+, I'm sure that they’re not exactly thrilled about it either.
What I’m trying to say is, as it all comes down to the bottom line, and G+ hasn't generated enough revenue for Alphabet, does anyone out there believe that Alphabet would consider a subscription-based G+?
It would represent a public relations coup for the Google brand if people were prepared to pay to stay on board. I would be among the first in line.
In a rat-race to the bottom line the winner will surely be- a rat.
But with the demise of G+ there will only be losers: millions of us Plussers, who will be unceremoniously thrown overboard and cast adrift into cyberspace in April without any instructions yet about how to save our data or how to export it to another platform. I've forged some very important friendships there, and the thought of losing contact is utterly depressing. Given all the work and enthusiasm Google employees put into G+, I'm sure that they’re not exactly thrilled about it either.
What I’m trying to say is, as it all comes down to the bottom line, and G+ hasn't generated enough revenue for Alphabet, does anyone out there believe that Alphabet would consider a subscription-based G+?
It would represent a public relations coup for the Google brand if people were prepared to pay to stay on board. I would be among the first in line.
That was beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI for one agree with you.
ReplyDeleteGoogle/Alphabet could indeed stage a coup. GPlus is everything Facebook should have been. And yes, I'm confident my GPlus Tribe would be more than willing to spend $5/month for a post-consumer GPlus. And if that's true for my Tribe, certainly it must be true for the 10's or 100's of thousands of other Gplus tribes out there.
Google could call it GPlusPlus or GPlus 2.0 .
My main issue is that while I would absolutely pay a subscription (if reasonable) that is meaningless if everyone I want to read / interact with / read me is not willing :( G+ is good because of the community - I have faced this before, when Livejournal changed so much that my friends exited. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all you said and feel about Google+
ReplyDeleteHeh. Google is not famous for public relations coups, only coup de grâce, sans grâce.
ReplyDeleteNo the winner is the cat sat on the finish line
ReplyDeleteMe too.
ReplyDeleteIf we take a cold, hard look at the alternative platforms available now, or those currently setting up shop, it's patently obvious that there is not - and probably never will be - anything to match G+ in terms of flexibility and sophistication.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to the "bottom line", social media platforms generally are faced with conflicting demands, not only from parent company boardrooms and the Wall Street casino, but also from governments and the mainstream media, who are clamoring for tighter regulation, because we are perceived as a serious threat to them.
If G+ can be salvaged as a subscription-based service why not throw our weight behind it?
Sue H Nothing ventured - nothing gained.
ReplyDeleteJohn Condliffe I disagree. G+ showed some interesting features. In time they'll end up integrated into other things. It might take another decade if Google has patents on them though.
ReplyDeleteAlan Cox I'm not sure what you disagree with, and.. "the winner is the cat sat on the finish line" looks a tad facetious and is couched in dreadful syntax. Reading between the lines, it looks like you're the kind of cat who makes a point of not being impressed by anything. Cynics are not happy people. Have you got anything constructive to add?
ReplyDeleteJohn CondliffeI I would be willing to spend $5/month for GPlus, and agree it would be a coup were Google to offer that.
ReplyDeleteAnyone, please tell me where I'm wrong in believing the only policy change Google would need to make is to allow G-Suite domains to "affiliate" with one another. By "affiliate," I mean the ability to [optionally] removing any current cross-domain permission restrictions.
John Condliffe I mean the winner is whoever has figured out where the rat race ends and is in place to pick up the bits with a new viable model that provides what people want.
ReplyDeleteScott Scowcroft After a fifteen-year forced absence from the Internet (brain damage) - I returned to notice that things had changed, had the good fortune to accidentally stumble into G+ which was in its infancy back then, took one look at Farcebook et al, and have never returned.
ReplyDeleteCan you remember how we were given default circles, one of which was Music? Having lost so much of my visual cortex, and half my cerebral cortex, nobody - not even Big Bad Google - was going to get away with foisting that crap on Big Bad Wolf John, so I spent the first month doing nothing but BLOCKING those potential invaders from accessing my precious world of sound, There were thousands upon thousands of them, but I wasn't going to venture further until until that damn circle was empty!
Given my severe cognitive deficits, learning to use another platform would be an insurmountable obstacle. I clawed my way out of a wheelchair and overcame the paralysis after my 3rd brain hemorrhage, so I'm not a born quitter, but I have learned to live within my limitations. I have tried to catch up with developments, but will always be a straggling cyber-dinosaur. If Google can't be persuaded, cajoled or nuked into some sort of a subscription deal I will give up.