Matt's not saying they aren't getting a lot of traffic, or that a lot of people don't enjoy using Facebook (nobody in their right mind would claim those things). Matt's saying that it's a rare form of chutzpah that Zuckerberg possesses that allows him to make up stuff like "the social graph" as justification for his second-place social network being worth 30 times the first-place social network (he's also saying some other stuff, but I think that's the funniest/truest part). And, of course, it takes an astounding reality distortion field for him to be able to convince half the people in the valley that it's a done deal: Facebook is "the next Google".
Facebook is not the next google for the simple fact that everyone is saying that it is. The Next Big Thing usually slips under the radar until it becomes completely dominant.
nice point - but myspace was a steal for fox and should be kicking themselves for selling so low. fb's valuation is mind boggling indeed and fb is not the next google - it does however have people excited about something besides the big G which is refreshing. chutzpa is making people believe, not telling the literal truth.
Some of the people involved in the MySpace deal are calling shenanigans. I almost have to believe them. Their traffic was just so immense, even then, and that was long before people even imagined how hard it is to monetize social network traffic.
who are these people that keep saying that Facebook is the next google? in what respect is it supposedly the next google? In that they are attracting a lot of talent? Then sure, I guess. In that they are, or will be, businesses of the same magnitude? not even Microsoft's FB valuation justifies that.
Also, and I'm not saying this justifies FB being worth 30x myspace (I don't know), but its very clear to me that in regards to innovation FB is the leader and the rest are playing catch-up at this point. I also doubt that without google's intervention myspace, hi5 or bebo would be able to catch up at all.
