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Latest Podcast

Concepts

Disruption Theory

  • How Facebook Squashed Twitter

    Twitter uncovered the most powerful format in mobile back in 2006: the feed. But, in 2009, Facebook went algorithmic while Twitter remained to hard to use. Now, it’s almost certainly too late.

  • The FANG Playbook

    The FANG companies — Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google — are far more similar than you might think. Their rise in value is no accident, and it is connected to Aggregation Theory.

  • Twitter 10,000, The Problem with Links, The Business of Expanded Tweets

    News leaked yesterday about Twitter’s plans to allow expanded tweets, something that was seemingly confirmed by Jack Dorsey. This is a move that is only natural, but the business implications are perhaps deeper than people have considered.

  • CES 2016, Augmented vs Virtual Reality, The Resilience of Video Games

    I continue to think that CES is getting more interesting, thanks to the maturation of the smartphone. Then, the differences between augmented and virtual reality, and how that explains the resilience of video games.

  • Tesla and Beyond Disruption, As Yahoo Turns

    A follow-up on Beyond Disruption and why it doesn’t apply to Tesla. Then, what in the world is going on with Yahoo?

  • Beyond Disruption

    Clayton Christensen claims that Uber is not disruptive, and he’s exactly right. In fact, disruption theory often doesn’t make sense when it comes to understanding how companies succeed in the age of the Internet.

  • “Selling Feelings” Follow-up, Match.com’s IPO and Tinder, The Sean Rad Interview

    Follow-up on my piece about Selling Feelings, and then an analysis of the Match.com IPO, and Tinder in particular. Plus, why I think Sean Rad is getting a bit of a bad rap for his disastrous interview.

  • Selling Feelings

    Distribution being free may have ruined old business models, but it allows businesses to get much closer to their customers and make money by meeting needs.

  • Amazon Opens Physical Bookstore, The iPad Pro’s Half Launch

    Amazon’s physical bookstore is first and foremost an experiment. However, it’s worth considering how it fits into Amazon’s measurement of success. Then, the iPad Pro launched, but not its accessories. It’s part of a worrying trend.

  • Activision Blizzard Buys King Digital, EA and the Disruption Narrative, Apple TV Gaming

    Activision Blizzard is buying King, the makers of Candy Crush Saga; the mobile games maker is probably worth more to a company like Activision Blizzard than they are by themselves. Plus, both EA and Activision Blizzard beat earnings expectations — does that mean the gaming disruption narrative is wrong?