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Facebook Messenger Platform

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Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#191

Post by verelo »

ethanpil wrote: post #92

I'm crying. Remember when messaging was built on open platforms and standards like XMPP and IRC? The golden year(s?) when Google Talk worked with AIM and anyone could choose whatever client they preferred? Welcome to the future friends when we must pay to battle the keymasters and gatekeepers on their terms to do what we used to do ourselves, for free. First they took my RSS, then they took my XMPP... Who can guess w…

Meh, this is just MSN all over again. This seems to be some kind of weird cycle the Internet goes through, I'm sure eventually an open protocol will thrive...we're just not there yet.

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#192

Post by vinnyp »

dsp1234 wrote: post #149
cpach wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, I’m afraid they wouldn’t. That’s also a big part of the problem. What’s the incentive for a large player like FB to use an open chat protocol? Not much, it seems :-/

It's a pretty common pattern. When you're small, you have no users, and need to start gathering network effects. So you champion and implement protocols that allow you to interoperate with other networks. You start to eat other companies lunches as you provide a better product. As you get larger, that same interoperability starts to become a liability as other networks start eating in to your userbase. So you cut out…

UX always wins. Build a great "open" UX and you have a chance to gain traction.

A bottoms up approach where we put the protocol first instead of experience is the "Architect Astronaut" way of looking at solving this problem and should be avoided - http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000018.html

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#193

Post by michalskop »

djsumdog wrote: post #117
pierre wrote: post #104

It is now time to take all the innovations that have been happening in china around WeChat/WeiXin and to implement them into messenger. This time it's the other way around, we are actually going to copy the Chinese (they have had an API addressable messaging platform way before us and are ahead of us in the exploration of what work / is possible) : - this may disrupt Local business/shop relation to client. (see how w…

> - this may disrupt paypal, as soon as you can send 'money' over a messaging app. American banking is so backwards and this will only make it worse. In Australia and New Zealand, no bank offers you checks. Do I own you $50? Well give me your BSB and account number. I type it into my phone app or web browser, type $50 and click send. It shows up tomorrow morning. Works on weekends, holidays, ANZAC day, New Years Day…

Btw., being from the Czech Republic, I have never used a cheque in my not-so-short life. The bank transfers take here from 0 seconds (within the same bank, costs 0 in my case), through a few hours/usually (within CZ, costs 0) to around two days (within EU, costs 0.7€). Paypal is used here because of the ease to pay abroad and competes with Visa/Mastercard mainly.

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#194

Post by rybosome »

djsumdog wrote: post #117
pierre wrote: post #104

It is now time to take all the innovations that have been happening in china around WeChat/WeiXin and to implement them into messenger. This time it's the other way around, we are actually going to copy the Chinese (they have had an API addressable messaging platform way before us and are ahead of us in the exploration of what work / is possible) : - this may disrupt Local business/shop relation to client. (see how w…

> - this may disrupt paypal, as soon as you can send 'money' over a messaging app. American banking is so backwards and this will only make it worse. In Australia and New Zealand, no bank offers you checks. Do I own you $50? Well give me your BSB and account number. I type it into my phone app or web browser, type $50 and click send. It shows up tomorrow morning. Works on weekends, holidays, ANZAC day, New Years Day…

> Our banking system is in the 1990s because PayPal, Square and now Facebook will lobby to keep their business models.

I find it thoroughly unbelievable that banks are trying to offer advanced, consumer-friendly features, only to be thwarted by the lobbying efforts of the technology industry. Don't get me wrong: technology companies are not morally superior and above political manipulation, but they would most certainly lose going head-to-head with the banking industry.

The banking system is stuck in the 1990s because banks have insufficient incentive to change, and there is a non-trivial segment of the population lacking knowledge of, access to, or trust in technology when it comes to financial matters.

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#195

Post by vinceyuan »

malanj wrote: post #10

Facebook seems to slowly be building out the feature set that WeChat ( https://a16z.com/2015/08/06/wechat-china-mobile-first/ ) has had for ages. It seems like Facebook first set out to capture the whole market, and are now slowly monetizing it fully. WeChat has achieved incredible ARPU (>$7/user/year) through a combination of chat APIs, 3rd party bots and integrated payments Facebook. If Facebook can achieve a simil…

You are right. WeChat has had voice message, video call, group chat, stickers, sending money for years.

I use WeChat frequently but seldom use fb messenger. (I am in Hong Kong.)

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#196

Post by rybosome »

Jtsummers wrote: post #109
theseatoms wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you have a way of siphoning users from FB to other platforms, then yes, you can win. Otherwise, when the gate shuts, your users are locked out.

Ok, I must be missing something. How is FB Messenger here anything other than a means of connecting to customers? If the concern is that FB will ape your app, then your app isn't sufficiently differentiated from their offerings. I want to write a game server, say for Go (the game, not the language). I want to make one (or the sole) method of connecting to it FB Messenger (hypothetical, not actually doing this, and th…

That's a reasonable point, but "sufficiently differentiated from their offerings" is pretty broad. Anything that's not a physical service could be considered insufficiently differentiated, not to mention that they could screw you much worse than simple imitation. Gussying up your idea and presenting it in a more integrated manner through internal APIs would be tame compared to the fact that they can actually revoke your API access. If they don't want to compete with you, they can completely shut you out, period.

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#197

Post by knz »

JoshTriplett wrote: post #144
knz wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think the average kiwi has seen a cheque in decades. After 10 years of living in the US I have started to rejoice in how despite being one of the most technologically advanced nations on earth the US still clings to things like paper cheques, $0.01/$0.05/$0.10 coins, US customary units, and a plumbing system that requires most houses to own a plunger. Perhaps it's a sign of assimilation?

> and a plumbing system that requires most houses to own a plunger. Getting off topic for the article at hand, but what's different in Australian plumbing in that area?

I can only speak for New Zealand, but the whole disposal method is fundamentally different. Instead of relying upon the swirling/draining motion to dispose of the waste, water is forced straight down into the much larger gap. Every kiwi/aussie who has stayed with me (in multiple homes) has complained about US toilets!

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#198

Post by knz »

op00to wrote: post #146
knz wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think the average kiwi has seen a cheque in decades. After 10 years of living in the US I have started to rejoice in how despite being one of the most technologically advanced nations on earth the US still clings to things like paper cheques, $0.01/$0.05/$0.10 coins, US customary units, and a plumbing system that requires most houses to own a plunger. Perhaps it's a sign of assimilation?

OK, explain the plunger comment please?

Nearly every home I have ever been into in the US owns a plunger due to poor performance of US toilets. Every kiwi who has stayed with me has had issues. I think the biggest proof of how useless they are is the fact that if you go to Home Depot and browse their toilets you will see the "flush performance" heavily featured in the marketing. As far as I can tell it's due to how the waste is disposed of (relying upon a draining/swirling motion rather than forcing water straight down) and the size of the outlet. I actually had the lower level of a house destroyed by a toilet that was blocked and overflowed. It just doesn't happen back in New Zealand!

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#199

Post by frogpelt »

robertfw wrote: post #145
gue5t wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a word for people who only care about their own quality of life, and not that of those around them: "assholes". Don't be an asshole, and don't advocate "fuck you got mine" practices like these. Let's work to dismantle abusive systems like Facebook.

"fuck you got mine" pretty much sums up capitalism as we know it today. Don't hold your breath for change

Not even close.

Very few people/companies get rich by not caring about their users or customers.

Most "greedy" corporations are actually improving the lives of their users or customers at least from the customers' perspective.

Re: Facebook Messenger Platform

#200

Post by fbthrowaway »

pierre wrote: post #104

It is now time to take all the innovations that have been happening in china around WeChat/WeiXin and to implement them into messenger. This time it's the other way around, we are actually going to copy the Chinese (they have had an API addressable messaging platform way before us and are ahead of us in the exploration of what work / is possible) : - this may disrupt Local business/shop relation to client. (see how w…

can you elaborate more on zhongan and micro-insurance? thanks! is it basically just chatting with an agent over weixin instead of chatting face-to-face or over the phone?
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