Comments on: Another View on Widgets

By: Cheap_Condoms

Cheap_Condoms — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:05:47 +0000

Sure we can see the signs, try n focus in the distance and foresee where we're going with this, try and put our minds back to pre-widgets and grasp some other similiar 'framework' that kinda worked b4…

By: Cheap Condoms

Cheap Condoms — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 19:42:54 +0000

However no yet knows exactly where this will go; as above we've each got ideas on what directions or detours we think it will take.

Brad seems 2b of the 'wait-n-c'; David -more pessimistic thats there's no real money in it; etc..

By: cheap condoms

cheap condoms — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 14:12:23 +0000

Well I think the
conventional way of running an online business have to be dumped when we talk
about widgets.I am open for more discussion on this but with previous twelve
comments..

By: SeanEllis

SeanEllis — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:05:20 +0000

An important piece of widget history often overlooked is Trivia Blitz. It launched in 1997 and by December 1999 had spread to 36,100 websites ranging from Geocities and Tripod personal pages to CNN and Tower Records. It replicated virally through an “add this game to your site” link. I launched this program as a low cost user acquisition tool for Uproar.com leveraging Uproar’s offshore development cost advantage. The widget extended the reach of Uproar’s game play experience and propelled Uproar.com to the number one ranked game site from 1998 until it’s acquisition by Vivendi Universal in 2001. Syndicating content through a widget is not for traditional marketers who obsesses about protecting the brand – which is probaby why Vivendi Universal killed it. But widgets are an ideal way to extend a site’s brand experience and ideally engage and acquire users for the mother ship.

By: SeanEllis

SeanEllis — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:03:54 +0000

By: Brendan Lally

Brendan Lally — Fri, 18 May 2007 16:52:21 +0000

I believe the eco-system of widgetization (or widgetisation if on IRL/EU side on pond) is still in its infancy.

Sure we can see the signs, try n focus in the distance and foresee where we’re going with this, try and put our minds back to pre-widgets and grasp some other similiar ‘framework’ that kinda worked b4…

However no yet knows exactly where this will go; as above we’ve each got ideas on what directions or detours we think it will take.

Brad seems 2b of the ‘wait-n-c’; David -more pessimistic thats there’s no real money in it; etc..

Me. I think its a ‘new’ cool technology that APPEARS 2 give value on web pages. Its easy 2 add in and hence part of the reason its getting traction. Its not been shaken around yet to find its true value but the easy distribution model sure helps.

Lal

By: Ali

Ali — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 12:37:56 +0000

Fred,

At first that is an wonderful article with the Widget management companies in
question. Well I came to your blog from Mike’s blog. Well I think the
conventional way of running an online business have to be dumped when we talk
about widgets.I am open for more discussion on this but with previous twelve
comments…I am bit unsure Fred would be listening ….not until he
superstitious …because this the thirteenth comment.

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 03:10:36 +0000

Mike – I’ve been pondering that more since this post as I’ve had a number of private emails (including some from the N widget management companies) saying “Feld – you are stupid.” My problem is that I don’t see the advertising opportunity with widgets (maybe I’m missing something obvious.) That leaves analytics and CDN as ways to make money. I don’t think analytics is a fundamental money maker as there are too many incumbent analytics companies (FYI – FeedBurner doesn’t make it’s money on analytics – they are just publisher services that are largely free). CDN is the interesting opportunity and the WMS’s the have masters TLA-like implementations of the CDN’s might end up in an interesting place. I’m thinking about writing another post on this since the private comments I’ve gotten have been so interesting.

By: VCMike

VCMike — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 02:18:21 +0000

Brad–

Here is my question: if a significant portion of web traffic is going to be consumed through widgets, isn’t there an opportunity for widget based analystics (ala omniture), ad serving (ala doubleclick) and ad network??

And if your immediate response is “why not omniture and dblck?” i would ask the same question of Feedburner…

Now, whehter their is a need for both an RSS management system AND a widget management system is a very real question, I think. But is there an opportunity for a new management system for the new world of distributed, deportalized, syndicated, widgetized content? I think so.

By: David Cohen

David Cohen — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 00:56:11 +0000

I am sufficiently annoyed.

By: ahoving

ahoving — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 14:35:41 +0000

Yahoo bought Konfabulator because they realized that when MyYahoo! (and every other MyHomepage) explodes, it explodes into desktop widgets. What’s holding widgets back right now is lack of imagination about RSS feeds. Once folks start feeding multimedia, archival material and properly marked ad links (and update around the clock, not just once a day), widgets will be the default Web interface. Desktop real estate and mindshare, dontcha think?

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 22:52:22 +0000

The Lijit Wijit is simply a distribution channel for Lijit’s search capability. Like many widgets, it’s an “application container” – in this case for easily integrating Lijit’s functionality on publisher’s websites. I don’t view “Lijit” as a “widget” company (or as one of the “23″.) Rather it is one of the N companies (with n rapidly approaching infinity) that use a “widget” to package subsets of their functionality.

By: Ivan

Ivan — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:59:18 +0000

Brad, 23 , ok fair enough. Long term business model – heh, we will see. But – to pick a case at random – what’s the long term business model of Lijit Widget?

By: Ivan Pope

Ivan Pope — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:20:43 +0000

Brad, if you see 23 widget distribution management systems out there, I’d be interested in your definition of ‘widget management’. Maybe you could list these 23 so we can see how they compare – though I suspect almost all of them are widget production and distribution systems. Thanks.

By: Brad Feld

Brad Feld — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 13:25:24 +0000

Ivan – I picked the number 23 just to annoy David Cohen – it’s his “bad number” (reference Lost and others.) I also deliberately used the phrase “widget management systems” (vs. including the word “distribution”) – I think WMS is a superset of the subfunctionality that I’m seeing in many of the things that I’ve come across (and your company Snipperoo is in this category.) I like what y’all are doing (and especially like the display of the Lijit Wijit on your home page.) I just worry that there’s no real long term business in what you are doing.