Facebook as the New AOL
September 12th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Even though we seem to have forgotten, America Online used to shape the way that we perceive and interact with the Internet (back in the mid to late 1990′s, in case you’ve forgotten). For AOL was a software package as much as an Internet provider: with a built-in browser that didn’t require the user to launch, at the time, Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. From a user standpoint, and from the way that web pages were rendered by the AOL browser, the way we perceived and interacted with the web was dictated by the usability and marketing concerns of America Online.
In a few significant ways, Facebook is the new AOL. Users filter links to new content through their Facebook accounts, and tend to have active sessions lasting for hours. So in a very real way, the way we interact with the web now is shaped by our Facebook experience.
Agree or disagree? Comments are always welcome.
