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Maybe if Blue Origin actually did something other than try to impede their competition[1], who actually is doing something and actually has products to sell to

by cronix 5y ago

Maybe if Blue Origin actually did something other than try to impede their competition[1], who actually is doing something and actually has products to sell to the public (satellite internet) and private companies (cheaper space launch with reusable rockets), they'd be in the news more and people would be talking about it and the envy would go away. I hear the name "Blue Origin" maybe 1-2x a year, and it's usually in the context of something SpaceX'ey - not some new revolutionary new thing they did. I hear "SpaceX" at least several times a week. That's a problem. The average person on the street has likely never even heard of Blue Origin, or know what they do, while they most likely have some idea of what SpaceX is and does. There is a tangible excitement about SpaceX. [1] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/05/amazons-kuiper-responds-to-elon-musks-spacex-on-fcc-request.html https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/05/amazons-kuiper-responds-to-e...

ortusdux 5y ago
"Additionally, Goldman highlighted that Amazon representatives have had “30 meetings to oppose SpaceX” but “no meetings to authorize its own system,” which he interpreted as an attempt to stifle competition."
libertine 5y ago
I think the fact that Space X, and Elon himself, being loud grabs a lot of attention in social media, and that ends up amplifying everything. I mean, they blew up some rockets while trying to make them land vertically, and was such a mind boggling achievement that people were - and still are - rooting for them. They have a pretty solid brand that was forged by their perseverance and boldness. Their story is not even of being the underdog in a competitive environment, because the endeavor itself was enough to make them stand out. Not to mention that there are 3 known brands in this industry, that don't overlap: NASA (the OG), Space X (the crazy guys that land rockets) and Blue Origin (which has no clear positioning). Even if Blue Origin won NASA contracts, it wouldn't matter the'd still be the last ones in people's minds. They could be doing backflips, for style points ofc, before landing a standing rocket that still wouldn't matter.
- philwelch 5y ago
  The funny thing is I think you’re overrating Blue Origin’s place in the space industry. ULA and Rocket Lab both provide commercial launch services to orbit. Boeing is part of the Commercial Crew program, though their capsule doesn’t really seem to work that well. Even Virgin managed to launch satellites to orbit recently.
  - deanCommie 5y ago
    Actually I think he's overstating it in the average person's mindshare too. I don't even know if the average person on the street could tell you what Blue Origin is, or name it if asked if they heard Jeff Bezos has a rocket company...
ObserverNeutral 5y ago
> That's a problem. The average person on the street has likely never even heard of Blue Origin, or know what they do, while they most likely have some idea of what SpaceX is and does. There is a tangible excitement about SpaceX. Why is this a problem? There is only one reason in business why you'd want to grab the attention of the average person...and that is advertising . Will SpaceX start advertising during launches? Maybe...up until then being known to the average person is not an advantage. Some people claim going public would enable SpaceX to cash in on its fame by offloading loads of stock to the aforementioned normies...but that practice scares away smart/value money so again...until SpaceX starts advertising during launches the only person benefiting from the social media fanfare is Musk who gets to be invited on SNL to show how socially akward he is.
- cronix 5y ago
  It's a problem contributing to Bezos' enviousness that the article was talking about. SpaceX gets all of the glory because they are actually doing things, so they are in the news and building brand recognition (for free!!). Hardly anyone has even heard of Blue Origin except mostly for people who already had an interest and seek it out. How many times has Blue Origin made it to the front page of HN vs SpaceX, which is a niche news site of higher-than-average technical readers? > Will SpaceX start advertising during launches? Maybe...up until then being known to the average person is not an advantage. Each time SpaceX is talked about, it's effectively a free advertisement for SpaceX. Look at all the talk about StarLink. Have you seen any paid ads? They don't need to, because they have been building their brand recognition for free with every launch for several years and people are excited about it and talk about it. Bezos company just does not have the same caché.
  - ObserverNeutral 5y ago
    SpaceX doesn't sell to the public, it doesn't have normie consumers who make purchasing decisions based on brand, at least not as yet. That can change when they start selling their internet services, but again up to now all the promotional energies to build a brand have not been monetized. The Free Advertisement and brand rising that you mentioned is only valuable if you monetize upon it. As of NOW the only way they have to monetize is selling advertising space during launches and I suppose they get the ads on Youtube as well.

by cronix 5y ago

ortusdux 5y ago

"Additionally, Goldman highlighted that Amazon representatives have had “30 meetings to oppose SpaceX” but “no meetings to authorize its own system,” which he interpreted as an attempt to stifle competition."

libertine 5y ago

I think the fact that Space X, and Elon himself, being loud grabs a lot of attention in social media, and that ends up amplifying everything. I mean, they blew up some rockets while trying to make them land vertically, and was such a mind boggling achievement that people were - and still are - rooting for them. They have a pretty solid brand that was forged by their perseverance and boldness. Their story is not even of being the underdog in a competitive environment, because the endeavor itself was enough to make them stand out. Not to mention that there are 3 known brands in this industry, that don't overlap: NASA (the OG), Space X (the crazy guys that land rockets) and Blue Origin (which has no clear positioning). Even if Blue Origin won NASA contracts, it wouldn't matter the'd still be the last ones in people's minds. They could be doing backflips, for style points ofc, before landing a standing rocket that still wouldn't matter.

philwelch 5y ago
The funny thing is I think you’re overrating Blue Origin’s place in the space industry. ULA and Rocket Lab both provide commercial launch services to orbit. Boeing is part of the Commercial Crew program, though their capsule doesn’t really seem to work that well. Even Virgin managed to launch satellites to orbit recently.
- deanCommie 5y ago
  Actually I think he's overstating it in the average person's mindshare too. I don't even know if the average person on the street could tell you what Blue Origin is, or name it if asked if they heard Jeff Bezos has a rocket company...

ObserverNeutral 5y ago

> That's a problem. The average person on the street has likely never even heard of Blue Origin, or know what they do, while they most likely have some idea of what SpaceX is and does. There is a tangible excitement about SpaceX. Why is this a problem? There is only one reason in business why you'd want to grab the attention of the average person...and that is advertising . Will SpaceX start advertising during launches? Maybe...up until then being known to the average person is not an advantage. Some people claim going public would enable SpaceX to cash in on its fame by offloading loads of stock to the aforementioned normies...but that practice scares away smart/value money so again...until SpaceX starts advertising during launches the only person benefiting from the social media fanfare is Musk who gets to be invited on SNL to show how socially akward he is.

cronix 5y ago
It's a problem contributing to Bezos' enviousness that the article was talking about. SpaceX gets all of the glory because they are actually doing things, so they are in the news and building brand recognition (for free!!). Hardly anyone has even heard of Blue Origin except mostly for people who already had an interest and seek it out. How many times has Blue Origin made it to the front page of HN vs SpaceX, which is a niche news site of higher-than-average technical readers? > Will SpaceX start advertising during launches? Maybe...up until then being known to the average person is not an advantage. Each time SpaceX is talked about, it's effectively a free advertisement for SpaceX. Look at all the talk about StarLink. Have you seen any paid ads? They don't need to, because they have been building their brand recognition for free with every launch for several years and people are excited about it and talk about it. Bezos company just does not have the same caché.
- ObserverNeutral 5y ago
  SpaceX doesn't sell to the public, it doesn't have normie consumers who make purchasing decisions based on brand, at least not as yet. That can change when they start selling their internet services, but again up to now all the promotional energies to build a brand have not been monetized. The Free Advertisement and brand rising that you mentioned is only valuable if you monetize upon it. As of NOW the only way they have to monetize is selling advertising space during launches and I suppose they get the ads on Youtube as well.