Facebook is an application that depends on the external operating system, making it difficult for them to overcome when compared with Apple or Google.
Right now, no one thinks that the user data leaks could affect Facebook. Instead, the immediate challenges will "expose" this social network's dependence on big competitors, like Apple and Google. Intelligencer's Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway believe that Facebook's business model is still very solid, they will face many challenges in the near future and are working to fix them.
"Facebook is in a similar situation to Saudi Arabia. They are all struggling to find ways to diversify their businesses and avoid 'putting all their eggs in one basket,' namely oil with Saudi Arabia and data with Facebook. Facebook's weakness is that it's not an operating system, it's just an app. As long as it runs on another enterprise platform, whether it's iOS or Android, Facebook will be vulnerable, "Galloway said.
This led Facebook to mobilize about 10,000 people to develop hardware devices, to avoid depending on outside platforms.
"Mark Zuckerberg understands that Tim Cook is the one who guarantees the operability of Facebook, there is nothing he can do to change this reality. That's why Facebook is looking to develop a platform that is bigger than Apple, they are now." trying to determine if it will be virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR), they might be developing smartphones too, "Golloway added.
Facebook has bought VR developer Oculus, but there's not a lot of news about these groundbreaking products yet. Meanwhile, Apple is also making inroads in the AR market, and this may be where they run into each other.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has confirmed that they are not a competitor to Facebook, because Apple does not participate in the field of social networking. Facebook is also hard to compete with Apple or Google in the device segment. "Phones developed by Facebook will be difficult to attract users unless they buy off a smartphone business, but currently no company has agreed to make such a big deal," said Swisher.
Two writers said that Facebook is unlikely to succeed in areas that are fiercely competitive or require creativity. "They can buy back or copy a competitor, which has happened many times. Facebook couldn't be creative. I don't know how they will approach and face criticism when it comes to the launch of a hardware device. Many people do not believe Facebook's data security capabilities and that will certainly apply to the device they develop. The next 5 years will be very difficult for the company, compared to 5 years ago, "said Swisher. .
However, Golloway and Swisher both acknowledge that Facebook's business model is still very successful, bringing a lot of profits to investors. The company's shares have risen 120% since the end of 2019, despite unfavorable news for them.
"If Facebook continues to dominate the social media arena and create something innovative, they will certainly be profitable, especially given that many advertisers admit they have no choice but to Facebook." Swisher said.
Via Intelligencer