Apple’s new Podcast Subscription service is what the App Store should be: a great Apple experience competing for customers.
Sovereign Writers and Substack
Substack is at the center of media controversy, most of which misses the point that sovereign writers — not Substack — are in control.
Google Goes to 15%, Taxes and Monopolies, The CAID
Google reduces App Store fees to 15%; its approach makes more sense than Apple’s, because it acts like the tax it is. Plus, Chinese companies skirt Apple’s rules.
Roblox vs. Second Life (and Minecraft), The Creativity Era, Roblox’s Business
More on what makes Roblox unique, and why App Store fees are ever more difficult to justify.
The Roblox Microverse
Roblox is something new and interesting that abstracts away the platforms underneath it.
The Web’s Missing Interoperability
Truly unlocking competition in tech means increasing interoperability; an absolutist approach to privacy is doing the exact opposite.
Substack and the Media, The Substack Opportunity, Substack’s Business Challenges
Substack is a threat to the media, but its business prospects are threatened by the same forces threatening all of media.
Context Collapse, Circles and Timing, Facebook’s Missing Platform
The ideas behind Social Networking 2.0 are not new, but the Idea Adoption Curve takes time. Plus, how Facebook missed its platform chance a decade ago.
Stripe: Platform of Platforms
Stripe’s announcement of Treasury — banking-as-a-service — manifests the breadth of the company’s ambition.
An Interview With Stripe President John Collison
An interview with Stripe President John Collison about Stripe Treasury, Stripe Capital, going public (or not), Stripe’s investments, and ambition.