I empathize with what you're saying, and in this case the notion of "stealing an idea" was a bit more blatant than most, but I still think two versions of Svbtl

I empathize with what you're saying, and in this case the notion of "stealing an idea" was a bit more blatant than most, but I still think two versions of Svbtle is better than one. Let's look at some positives of what the clone did: 1) It generated buzz for both sites. And forced people to consider this idea as a legitimate product, instead of a weekend hack. 2) It validated the market. More people doing similar things suggests there's a valid space there. 3) Provided that both sites continue to operate and grow, they will continue to push eachother to do better. I don't think the fact that the core product was copied is discouraging at all. I think it helps. I think the real problem you have is the manner in which it was copied. You nailed it with this line: "Real creative comes from a personal connection to a project or idea." <-- this is true. If the idea started with you, and you have the passion to continue executing on it, you'll stay the long haul and it will become a great product, it's your baby. Why does it matter what else is in the market? Shipping a product is half the battle - especially when you're dealing with space where there's no proprietary technology powering the product. Where real differentiation occurs is marketing execution, and that's where innovation is forced to occur.