Participate in Mashable Awards 2007
Leading social-networking blog, Mashable (a publication to which I contribute), is rebranding their 2006 Social Networking Awards into Mashable Awards 2007. The name change will coincide with other potential tbd additions as Mashable community director Adam Hirsch connects with PR reps, VCs, Bloggers, etc eager to contribute. Contact Adam at mashablecommunity AT gmail DOT com.
Returning to the 2006 results provides an interesting display of web trends, primarily illustrating the rapid rate of development for emerging companies (and also a few laughs). An obvious example is the explosion of Facebook, a company which has dominated the second half of 2007 with news headlines, partnerships, and inflated valuations.
Only a year ago, the criteria triad of Growth/Momentum, Design/Usability, and Uniqueness/Innovation placed Facebook behind MySpace, Multiply, Bebo, and Vox. The compete.com graph below compares growth of Facebook to 2006 People’s Choice winner Mulitply. I wonder how James Surowiecki would deduce this outcome.
Here is some insight from Mashable founder, Pete Cashmore, on the growth disparity. In 2006, both Multiply and Facebook used exclusivity as a separation device from King MySpace. Facebook, however, gradually experimented with various demographics resulting in comparatively stagnant years for Multiply and MySpace. With some urging a return to exclusivity for Facebook in the near future, the 2008 awards will most likely paint a drastically different picture.
Filed under: Infonalysis