Flavio about Business 2.0

As already mentioned before, Facebook is gaining internet platform status. No wonder there are already dedicated blogs about facebook but now there is also a new tool to monitor facebook application success: Appaholic. The name refers to well known Alexaholic that had to change its name to Statshaholic because of trademark issues with Alexa (an Amazon Company).

Comparing the new Where I’ve been App against HOT or NOT

Watch out when building facebook apps: They changed the from being able to invite 10 users at a time to 10 users a day per user, severally limiting the viral distribution of facebook apps:

Inside Facebook’s take

While researching on the facebook platform, I stumbled upon this blog: http://www.insidefacebook.com/

With the rising hype around the facebook platform and Mark Zuckerberg showing no modesty by saying they want to build a platform to the internet as was the Microsoft Windows OS to computing, Applications on Facebook gain an increasing momentum.

The most used application Top friends has - at time of this writing - 6,908,623 users growing a few hundred users every minute.

The increasing traction that facebook applications receive, has already let to two acquisitions.

If Facebook becomes the next Microsoft, then inside facebook has a pole position for being the next Techcrunch

I’d like to tell you about the fact that START St. Gallen together with my good friend Andreas Brenner, is hosting the event ” Web 2.0 = Money 2.0? Gründerperspektiven im Mitmachweb” starting at 18.00 to 20.00.

As speakers we would like to announce the following personalities:

* Ehssan Dariani, Founder StudiVZ
* Patrick Frei, Founder Venture Valuation
* Felix Haas, Founder Amiando
* Barnaby Skinner, Journalist at SonntagsZeitung

The participants are first going to present their perspective for 15 minutes. A discussion with the audience will follow the speeches.

Data:
Location: Universität St. Gallen, Room A120
Time: Monday, 25th Juny 2007, 18.00-20.00

Start Global St. Gallen and I would love to welcome you in St. Gallen to discuss about Web 2.0 and it’s future.

Join our event on facebook!

A short look at an Alexa Rank at Statsaholic, comparing studivz.net and facebook.com shows a clear result:

Facebook’s growth in visitors can’t be stopped nor topped, but Studivz.net seems to be standing still in unique visitors accessing the site.

Generally, this is not that much of a surprise, because facebook has a far better developed product including the much beloved newsfeed and the much extended group functionality.

Additionally, it has an open facebook platform with API , which allows companies and developers to create applications right in the heart of facebook, allowing a huge leverage from the already existing userbase of facebook. No need to hunt your users anymore and ask them to fill in all their details. It’s already there. They just have to sign up.

I have been observing the growth of the Switzerland network within facebook for six months now and it has grown from 3000 users to close to over 13000 by the time of this writing, a 300% increase in just 6 months.

In the long run, I see more and more people using facebook and making the switch from studivz in the germanophone countries, for the reasons noted above. Anyway an interesting battle to watch.