I’ve only just run across this news, but in reading several different tech publications today, most notably the Official Google Blog, I see that Google has announced it is decommissioning its Buzz service.
I can’t seem to locate a specific date when the shutdown is going to take place, other than a reference to “in a few weeks.”
Google indicates, though, that Buzz content will not cease to exist, but rather be visible on user’s Google Profile or downloaded using Google Takeout.
Now having said that, I’m deeply troubled by this news – and indeed this trend. Allow me to elaborate.
I can respect Google’s willingness to recognise when things haven’t lived up to expectations – even been utter failures – and make decisions to refocus their attention and resources elsewhere. I can also respect the fact that being on the cutting edge frequently means you are making up the rules as you go, and frequently having to move the goal posts in pursuit of a new idea or experiment.
That’s a large part of the R&D process. Formulate an idea; design and implement it; observe what happens; make changes to try and improve it; observe the results. It’s inevitable that some ideas end up better on paper than in practice.
At the same time, though, Google is dangerously close to becoming stigmatized as an unreliable service provider for non-early adopters; and let’s face it, that’s the bulk of the market.
In my view this is a critical distinction that needs to be recognised. At some point a company like Google needs to shore up its reputation as a service provider. This doesn’t mean stop innovating – I love what they do. However the more R&D projects like Buzz get cancelled, the worse Google’s track record becomes, and the less likely people are to consider your ideas.
At some point, only the bleeding edge will remain – and that’s not a sustainable long term business model.
Non-early adopters have distinctly different needs and expectations of an online service than the far smaller bleeding edge segment does. Early adopters are far more willing to give things a go, and just see how they pan out. They’re also a very fickle bunch, so there are in some ways fewer long term risks with early adopters than those later in the long tail.
The only real issue for early adopters is for a company to stop innovating.
The risks are far greater with those later in the adoption curve. If you alienate them, or become seen as a company with lots of big ideas but few that you can rely upon to be there in the long term, you’re in big trouble. It’s hard to regain the trust of a disenfranchised average user.
With my bleeding edge hat on, I find Google really exciting to watch. They’ve got fascinating mobility and flexibility for such a large company.
Yet with my other hats on, I’m beginning to see a company that’s good for search, but one that I’m far less willing to rely upon to house any of my data; and when it comes to making recommendations to staff in my Faculty, I have to be pragmatic and somewhat conservative in my recommendations.
Google is becoming a company I’m not so sure I can recommend to the average user.
There are several useful things about this post.
It means we’ll have to find Ed Webb all over again.
It encouraged me to back up all my Google Docs to my hard drive.
Plus I am able to narrow down my complaints about Google Plus to one: the fact that it only uses 1/3 of my screen space, while Buzz was very efficient.
You’ll never find Ed Webb. He’s off somewhere raging about #buzzkill and rallying support for #occupybuzz
Hah! OK, you’ll be here then.
In the meantime, I think I’ll go back to saving everything in text files.