Sometimes, it seems like the products that succeed in a free market are not necessarily the products that will make consumers happiest in the long run.
For instance: Facebook has a ludicrously high valuation, but is it actually creating that much value? I don't think so -- the monetary valuation of Facebook is mostly due to the fact that it is addictive and contagious, rather than due to any substantial consumer betterment created by the service.
(That general critique is also applicable to most of the facebook apps out there so far, I think)
I think it creates value in the ability to keep track of your personal social network. Its not entirely difficult to manage contacts on your own, but I think its nice that at the very least I can send a Facebook message to someone (if not gather their contact information via their profile if they choose to include it) if I'd like to ask them a question or catch up with them. In the past, you might have to ask a mutual friend or spend some energy figuring out how to reconnect with them.
But I agree that their revenue is generated mostly because most of their users have trouble limiting their time on the site, which can be considered a negative impact.
Sometimes, it seems like the products that succeed in a free market are not necessarily the products that will make consumers happiest in the long run.
For instance: Facebook has a ludicrously high valuation, but is it actually creating that much value? I don't think so -- the monetary valuation of Facebook is mostly due to the fact that it is addictive and contagious, rather than due to any substantial consumer betterment created by the service.
(That general critique is also applicable to most of the facebook apps out there so far, I think)