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DropBox fit that category. It was a solved problem for the people on HackerNews. "Oh we already have rsync for that". They had a very critical reaction here, mo
by eloff 11y ago
DropBox fit that category. It was a solved problem for the people on HackerNews. "Oh we already have rsync for that". They had a very critical reaction here, most people thought the idea didn't have any value, but now look at where they are.
I also think that back when Amazon started, a lot of people laughed at the idea of selling books online. In fact for many, many years with Amazon making huge losses people predicted they would fail.
But I agree there are always exception to the rule. The question, I suppose, is which one is the rule?
- w1ntermute 11y ago> In fact for many, many years with Amazon making huge losses people predicted they would fail. Amazon has been making huge losses for many years because they were reinvesting in expansion, which is very expensive for them. Amazon's investors understand and support these efforts. That's different from something like Dropbox, where they can't get the majority of users to pay for the service: http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-growth-not-profitability-2015-6 http://www.businessinsider.com/dropbox-ceo-drew-houston-grow... The reason nobody else founded Dropbox was because they didn't have the luxury of running a lossmaking business for years on end.
- danieltillett 11y agoYes having to make a profit limits your business model options.
- eloff 11y agoThat's the situation now, and nobody is thinking they're going to fail now. But back in the early days of Amazon the sentiment was different.