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The blog post zeros right in on the purpose of the pg essay. It is investor driven. But the part about businesses building value is what is a little fuzzy? W
by garbaaj 14y ago
The blog post zeros right in on the purpose of the pg essay.
It is investor driven.
But the part about businesses building value is what is a little fuzzy? What is value, anyway?
If some "growth hackers", using the incedible and low cost reach of the web, manage to get a million people to "sign up" for some "thing" - never mind that you or someone else may think this "thing" is all but worthless - then this is a "business" that can be exploited. And that's what internet VC do.
Consumers define "value". If they are willing to pay in money or even just attention for absolute garbage, it is still "value". This appears to be true, at least it is true for investors, whether we like it or not.
- batista 14y ago>But the part about businesses building value is what is a little fuzzy? What is value, anyway? Apple giving affordable Apple IIs to american homes, or Ford, making cars available. Not "getting a million people to sign up" as a "revenue to be exploited". In that sense, customers DON'T define value, they just define profits. He meant value the ethical and "make society better", way.
- garbaaj 14y agoValue will vary from buyer to buyer. Silly example: To junk collectors junk has value. But I think it's safe to say not everyone will agree with the junk collector. Ethics really should not vary all that much from person to person. If it does then what's the point of even having a notion of ethics? The whole idea is to have some sort of common standard. Value in this sense is nothing like ethics. If we ask the junk collector if stealing is wrong, his answer should not vary much from the answer anyone else gives. For some people, enriching investors using the most effective means possible (high growth; any legal business purpose is OK), seems to be well within the scope of "making society better".