Last chance to save on Digiday Publishing Summit passes is February 9
Facebook’s move to plunk down $1 billion for photo-sharing network Instagram raised plenty of eyebrows, mostly because that’s a hefty price to pay for a 12-person outfit in business for some 500-odd days. Rick Webb, a former top executive at The Barbarian Group, sees in the move (and Zynga’s $200 million buy of OMGPOP, the marker of social game hit Draw Something) a hint of desperation beyond the typical Silicon Valley paranoia that a few guys in a garage will upend things. For Webb Facebook is showing its vulnerabilities in a way that would be unthinkable for a giant like Google.
They seem more able to be toppled. It seems possible to knock them off of their throne. Two companies, OMGPOP and Instagram, came out of nowhere and became viable competitors. That’s kind of amazing. It’s amazing to me that Instagram got 30 million users in no time at all. It’s crazy that Draw Something can get 50 million downloads in 50 days. It’s mind blowing that Pinterest went from nothing to 10 million users in the blink of an eye. It’s amazing how fragile it all is. Facebook may be the first viable threat to Google, but its own market dominance is by no means assured.
Read Webb’s full post on BetaBeat. Follow him on Twitter at @rickwebb.
More in Media
Brands invest in creators for reach as celebs fill the Big Game spots
The Super Bowl is no longer just about day-of posts or prime-time commercials, but the expanding creator ecosystem surrounding it.
WTF is the IAB’s AI Accountability for Publishers Act (and what happens next)?
The IAB introduced a draft bill to make AI companies pay for scraping publishers’ content. Here’s how it’ll differ from copyright law, and what comes next.
Media Briefing: A solid Q4 gives publishers breathing room as they build revenue beyond search
Q4 gave publishers a win — but as ad dollars return, AI-driven discovery shifts mean growth in 2026 will hinge on relevance, not reach.