An overview of Amazon’s new fire lineup and how it fits with the company’s overall strategy, an overview of the Apple TV from last week’s event, and a discussion about the fundamental challenge facing all of these TV boxes.
Medium and the Publishing Long Tail, Content Blockers and Facebook, Amazon Prime and the Washington Post
A bit of follow-up on yesterday’s post Popping the Publishing Bubble, and why Medium is potentially trying to replicate Stripe’s strategy. Plus, the key decision-maker when it comes to ad-blocking is Facebook, and it’s not at all clear what they will do. Finally, an experiment from Jeff Bezos with the Washington Post and Amazon Prime.
Amazon Retrenches on Hardware, Apple to Create Original Programming?
Amazon is making big changes at Lab126, its hardware subsidiary, after the Fire phone flop. I think it’s a fantastic sign for the company going forward. Plus, Apple is reportedly thinking about getting into original content; there are both optimistic and pessimistic spins to put on this, but ultimately I think it’s a bad idea.
Aggregation and the New Regulation
Because of the Internet realities described by Aggregation Theory a smaller number of companies hold an increasing amount of power. However, an increasing focus on market forces reduces the latitude for bad behavior, and the incentives — and means — to hold those companies to account are greater than ever.
Amazon Continued and the Role of Journalism, Three Streaming Developments: HBO, Amazon Prime, and ESPN
The Amazon story continues, and it is striking how there is zero common ground between people who work in tech and the journalists who cover it. Will this mark a shift in the relationship? Plus, what HBO’s Sesame Street deal, Amazon’s Top Gear deal, and NBC’s Premier League deal say about the future of streaming.
The New York Times on Amazon, Jeff Bezos’ Email, Why Work for Amazon
The New York Times has a very in-depth critique of Amazon’s work culture. Some of what was reported was truly deplorable, and Jeff Bezos wrote that he agrees; other parts, though, deserve a much more nuanced and respectful discussion than what the New York Times provided.
Amazon’s Transformation, The Apple Music Backlash
Amazon turned a surprising profit: was it on purpose? More importantly, what does it say about the fundamental nature of Amazon as a company and as an investment? Plus, why the Apple Music backlash shouldn’t be a surprise, and a survey about meet-ups for this summer.
Aggregation Theory
The disruption caused by the Internet in industry after industry has a common theoretical basis described by Aggregation Theory.
YouTube Gaming, Network Defensibility, The Applicability of Metcalfe’s Law
YouTube Gaming is taking on Twitch, which raises a number of interesting questions: is YouTube Gaming like Google+, and if not, why not? Will it succeed, or should Google have simply bought Twitch? Also, a fascinating paper about Metcalfe’s Law and when and where it applies.
Daum Kakao Buys Path, Amazon’s Funnel, More from Mary Meeker
Messaging apps are great examples of the power of funnels, and of how difficult they are to build. Meanwhile, Amazon expands and leverages theirs, plus my five favorite Mary Meeker slides.