Twitter founders create new social networks
With Twitter now firmly cemented as
one of the key players in the social media world, it would be understandable if
its founders, Evan Williams and Biz Stone, were to take a back seat and simply revel
in the success of their creation. This is evidently not the case though, as the
duos forward thinking nature has seen them launch two new social networks.
Branch
The first of these creations, Branch,
sees the removal of the constraints present on Twitter by allowing users to partake
in more in-depth
discussions. Twitter users can sign in using their account and are then
free to join in with whatever topics of discussion they so feel. One can even
set up their own ‘branch’ to spark a dialogue on their desired subject. As a
complimentary element to Twitter, users could move between the micro-blogging
platform and Branch to expand their discussions and focus on certain issues
that really matter to them. The Head of Product at Branch, Josh Miller, has
noted that the network is designed to combine “the intimacy of a dinner table
conversation with the power of the internet”. Subsequently, the network is
expected to improve the quality of conversations and create an online dialogue,
which is seen by Miller to be largely lost due to the domination of internet “monologues”.
Medium
Medium is a completely different
type of publishing platform. Similar to Pinterest, Medium is a highly visual
network which is built around ‘collections’.
Users can upload images and text, if
they so wish, and then have their work viewed and voted on by others. Those
that choose not to upload content can instead give authors feedback on their
work. The collections that gain the highest ratings are then more likely to be
viewed by others as they will feature prominently on the site. Users can choose
to make their collections private though, in which case only designated people
can view their work. Conversely, collections can even be left ‘open
for more collaborative efforts’. Plainly, the level of contribution
on Medium is entirely up to the user.
On the Medium site, Evan Williams
goes into some depth on the vision behind it. Essentially the aim is to evolve
the online publishing world. Williams
notes that ‘in many ways, the web is still mimicking print concepts, while
not even catching up to it in terms of layout, design, and clarity of
experience’. Hence Medium will seek to address this by offering a quality and innovative
publishing platform. He does admit that the site will be experimental for a
time, expecting it to ‘evolve rapidly’ as they learn more about how the site is
being used.
Is this anything new?
Criticism has been levelled at both
sites for their seemingly strong likeness to other platforms. Whilst Medium has
been called a ‘higher-brow
version of Pinterest’, Branch has been compared to Menshn and Google+
Hangouts. It appears these new networks have most definitely borrowed many
elements from successful social networks - it would be detrimental not to - but
have put a new twist on things.
Through the Obvious Corporation,
Williams and Stone have made a conscious effort to further existing aspects of social
media. In the case of Branch, the dialogue element of social media has been
refined. The site represents a destination to engage in and discover
interesting conversations, which can branch over numerous posts. The aim is to
spark quality conversation, ridding idle chat and petit arguments, although
this is yet to be seen. There is even the possibility for Branch to be ‘embedded
on any website’, expanding the possible audience and opening the discussion
out to others.
Medium has been mostly put side by
side with Pinterest but the difference being it is a publishing platform. It
does appear at this early stage, with no disrespect to Pinterest, to signify a
more intellectual social network. Whilst Pinterest does showcase some great and
original work, there is also a fair amount which is rather vapid. Medium looks
to only showcase the best work through featuring the highest rated posts and
collections. Nevertheless, it seems a comparison between the two is worthless
as they fulfil two different functions and attract varied audiences. The future
of Medium is yet to be seen but, once open for use, it will be expected to gain
many contributors with its elegant and easy to use format.
Credit must be given to Williams and
Stone for their roles in looking to evolve the world of social media. They have
certainly recognised some social network niches that require development and worked
hard to improve them. Their philosophy that ‘quality begets quality’ will
hopefully come to fruition as the less desirable elements of social media are
ridded of in these new networks.
Josh Bennett, Content Writer
@JoshAtSMF @SocialMediaF
Twitter founders create new social networks
Reviewed by Mili and Paul
on
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Rating: