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> either the company doing the work should expand, or it should have competitors. That's not how technology works. The most evident example is where data feeds

by jack9 10y ago

> either the company doing the work should expand, or it should have competitors. That's not how technology works. The most evident example is where data feeds data, creating a market without compare. You can't compete with google for map data or AWS for hosting. > we should ultimately reach some sort of equilibrium The equilibrium is not based on the metrics you have proposed except in the slightest degree.

matthewowen 10y ago
Doesn't the fact that people are trying to compete with those services suggest that you can? Bing maps, Apple maps, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Digital Ocean, Joyent. I don't think technology is that different. Incumbents have always had advantages. That doesn't totally preclude the possibility of competition. It might be that they compete by providing less value for less cost (eg the maps might not be as good, but they might be good enough for some users), or by servicing users that the incumbent doesn't care about (side note: isn't this what The Innovator's Dilemma is about?). But it's rare that a competitor is so dominant as to totally preclude any possibility of competition. You certainly haven't provided an example of one yet.
- jack9 10y ago
  > Doesn't the fact that people are trying to compete with those services suggest that you can? In 20 years, we will see who is competing and who is was just funded with unicorn dreams. I don't consider a single one of those comparable.
  - phamilton 10y ago
    > I don't consider a single one of those comparable. Azure and Google Compute Engine? I'd say those are pretty comparable to AWS.
    - jack9 10y ago
      Spend 25k a month on Azure vs AWS. It's not comparable any more than Sonii branded product are comparable to Sony products. One derives revenue comes from ignorance while the other is the product being copied, badly. GCE is akin to Oracle's "cloud offering" which is simply a different product, but hey they all say "cloud" so they are competing! Market influence isn't as powerful when you can't actually deliver. What's to the left of you at 33.802799, -117.885665 using apple maps? Oh Apple Maps a different market, meaning it's not in the same market. Being apologetic about features is being disingenuous about choices. There aren't that many for people who have specific technical needs and marketing doesn't solve "address those issues" (a scripted phrase from highwinds CDN, which is another terrible service). The leaders will stay that way and there's not a lot that venture capital can do to avoid that, since outliers are absorbed in these winner-take-all markets.
      - nkurz 10y ago
        What's to the left of you at 33.802799, -117.885665 using apple maps? Could you explain your example? I tried this, thinking it might give me something interesting, but I couldn't figure out what you were referring to.

by jack9 10y ago

matthewowen 10y ago

Doesn't the fact that people are trying to compete with those services suggest that you can? Bing maps, Apple maps, Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Digital Ocean, Joyent. I don't think technology is that different. Incumbents have always had advantages. That doesn't totally preclude the possibility of competition. It might be that they compete by providing less value for less cost (eg the maps might not be as good, but they might be good enough for some users), or by servicing users that the incumbent doesn't care about (side note: isn't this what The Innovator's Dilemma is about?). But it's rare that a competitor is so dominant as to totally preclude any possibility of competition. You certainly haven't provided an example of one yet.

jack9 10y ago
> Doesn't the fact that people are trying to compete with those services suggest that you can? In 20 years, we will see who is competing and who is was just funded with unicorn dreams. I don't consider a single one of those comparable.
- phamilton 10y ago
  > I don't consider a single one of those comparable. Azure and Google Compute Engine? I'd say those are pretty comparable to AWS.
  - jack9 10y ago
    Spend 25k a month on Azure vs AWS. It's not comparable any more than Sonii branded product are comparable to Sony products. One derives revenue comes from ignorance while the other is the product being copied, badly. GCE is akin to Oracle's "cloud offering" which is simply a different product, but hey they all say "cloud" so they are competing! Market influence isn't as powerful when you can't actually deliver. What's to the left of you at 33.802799, -117.885665 using apple maps? Oh Apple Maps a different market, meaning it's not in the same market. Being apologetic about features is being disingenuous about choices. There aren't that many for people who have specific technical needs and marketing doesn't solve "address those issues" (a scripted phrase from highwinds CDN, which is another terrible service). The leaders will stay that way and there's not a lot that venture capital can do to avoid that, since outliers are absorbed in these winner-take-all markets.
    - nkurz 10y ago
      What's to the left of you at 33.802799, -117.885665 using apple maps? Could you explain your example? I tried this, thinking it might give me something interesting, but I couldn't figure out what you were referring to.