The hottest Platforms Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top News Topics

Network Effects (part 2)

The Odin Times • 98 implied HN points • 06 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Network Effects Startups Software companies Platforms
  1. Network effects are crucial for predicting outlier returns in venture capital investments.
  2. Different types of network effects exist in modern software companies, each with varying degrees of value and defensibility.
  3. Software companies with network effects have seen tremendous value creation in the tech industry, making network effects a significant factor for successful startups.

The Best Web to App Converters in 2024

The journey of a solopreneur (by David Journeypreneur) • 19 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Apps Web Platforms Tools
  1. Transitioning from web to app is crucial for businesses to enhance user engagement and expand reach.
  2. Various web-to-app converters offer unique features, pricing, and capabilities for app development.
  3. Leading platforms like WebToApp.app, Convertify, and Appilix provide excellent customer service, quick conversion, and user-friendly interfaces.

The Unbundling of Twitter

ceonyc • 137 implied HN points • 20 Mar 23
🕹 Technology Social media Networking Platforms Engagement
  1. Consider the shift towards posting on platforms that are more specialized for specific topics or verticals.
  2. Analyzing the engagement on different social media platforms can provide insights on audience relevance and interaction.
  3. Reflect on how the trend of unbundling services, like seen with Craigslist, could impact the microblogging and newsfeed landscape.
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Are you a platform?

Developer GTM – by Calyx Consulting • 99 implied HN points • 14 Jun 23
💼 Business Platforms Ecosystems API Consultancy Product Development
  1. Platforms come in various forms, not just through APIs, and successful platforms connect different parts of the value chain.
  2. Organic growth is crucial for platforms to succeed, and the relationship between platform and ecosystem is interdependent.
  3. Building a platform requires internal buy-in from leadership and alignment with company goals to ensure long-term success.

Tools & Platforms in 2023

Aashay's Newsletter • 98 implied HN points • 26 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Tools Platforms
  1. Entrepreneurs leverage technological advancements as building blocks for new companies.
  2. Tools are essential in the development workflow for startups, aiding in replacing repetitive processes.
  3. Platforms provide startups with unique data or distribution, enhancing their product experience.

Me vs Unity and Microsoft

Kevin’s Substack • 3 HN points • 15 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Software Development Platforms Issues Support
  1. Creating software can come with unexpected challenges, even when using popular tools like Unity and Microsoft.
  2. Unity's rules against uploading executables can lead to complexities and rejection when trying to submit software to their platform.
  3. Dealing with antivirus software like Windows Defender can pose significant hurdles, impacting the distribution and acceptance of software products.

Be Mindful of the Power of Platforms

Equal Ventures • 79 implied HN points • 25 Apr 23
💼 Business Platforms Ecommerce Retail Investing
  1. Platforms like Salesforce, Apple, and Amazon have significant power over not only customers but also business partners, with potential risks for those who rely heavily on them.
  2. Shopify, once a DTC favorite, is now making strategic moves to increase its own revenue through actions like tightening control over checkout and fulfillment services, affecting both merchants and app developers.
  3. Amazon's dominance in the retail platform space has grown, leading to concerns for sellers regarding fees and limited alternatives, emphasizing the importance of balancing platform reliance with diversification.

Startups.email - Issue #4

startupsemail • 78 implied HN points • 05 May 23
💼 Business Startups Entrepreneurship Technology SaaS Platforms
  1. Building a business with a huge platform risk can lead to high success chances, even though it comes with potential downsides.
  2. Businesses heavily dependent on popular platforms like Notion, Airtable, or Shopify can tap into a large user base and market.
  3. Examples like Notion Forms, Datafetcher, and Wildmetrics show that businesses with high platform risks can achieve substantial monthly recurring revenues.

Genre Grapevine Twitter Update (Including Info on Alternatives)

Genre Grapevine • 78 implied HN points • 20 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Social media Platforms Alternatives Issues Connections
  1. Twitter is facing challenges with its verification system and user experience.
  2. Alternative social media platforms like Mastodon, Hive, Post, and Tribel Social have not gained traction.
  3. Spoutible is emerging as a potential Twitter alternative with interactive features, but it's still new and not widely adopted yet.

How to get the audio version of Letters from an American

Letters from an American • 4 implied HN points • 29 Feb 24
🎙 Podcasts Audio Subscription Platforms Feedback
  1. To receive the audio version of 'Letters from an American' automatically, adjust your settings on Substack.
  2. The default setting for Substack does not automatically send the audio version, ensuring no spam for those who don't want it.
  3. Audio versions are also available on platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify for easy access.

How to Quit Substack

Freddie deBoer • 10 HN points • 13 Jan 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Media Ideology Platforms Journalism
  1. The idea of 'no ethical living under capitalism' suggests the complexity of ethical decisions in a system of exploitation, emphasizing the need to work towards a better system.
  2. Critics of Substack may be focused more on personal gain and status rather than genuine moral concerns, using the platform move as a marketing strategy.
  3. The decision to leave a platform like Substack should be made authentically for personal reasons, rather than as a performative display of moral superiority or business strategy.

Vertical Integration of Platforms and Product Prominence in Online Hotel Booking

Platform Papers • 79 implied HN points • 12 Jan 23
💼 Business Platforms Recommendations Digital economy Regulations
  1. Digital platforms can influence consumer choices by steering them towards certain products and suppliers. This can raise concerns about biased recommendations and the impact on consumer interests.
  2. Regulations like the European Digital Markets Act aim to restrict the power of large online platforms, particularly concerning practices like self-preferencing.
  3. Studies suggest that vertically integrated meta-search platforms may prioritize affiliated sales channels, potentially affecting search quality and competition. Empirical analyses highlight the need for better data to understand these dynamics.

Platform Papers 2022 Year in Review

Platform Papers • 59 implied HN points • 29 Dec 22
🕹 Technology Research Academic Platforms Competition Regulation
  1. In 2022, there was a record number of academic papers published on platform competition, with a significant increase in marketing-related research.
  2. The research themes in platform competition covered ecosystem governance, network effects, heterogeneity within platforms, and corporate scope.
  3. Academic articles highlighted topics such as differential revenue sharing, collective governance, positive demand spillover, local network effects, and decentralized platform governance.

The passion economy is a ploy

Links I Would Gchat You If We Were Friends • 139 implied HN points • 03 Mar 21
🕹 Technology Platforms Labor Economy Tech AI
  1. The gig economy and the 'passion' economy are seen as one phenomenon that depletes the labor ecosystem, extracting value from workers.
  2. Examples of unalienated labor can be found among artisans and in spaces like Black hair salons, where people genuinely love their work.
  3. Empowering workers in the digital age involves creating platforms that they have control over, ensuring they benefit from the value they produce.

The Architecture of Modern Observability Platforms

Bit by Bit • 11 implied HN points • 26 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Observability Architecture Platforms Data Storage
  1. Observability platforms help organizations understand the health of their applications using metrics, logs, and traces.
  2. Modern observability platforms tackle the challenge of handling large volumes of data and offer different types of architectures.
  3. Unifying the storage, ingestion, and querying layers can significantly scale and reduce costs in observability platforms.

Promoting Platform Takeoff and Self-Fulfilling Expectations

Platform Papers • 19 implied HN points • 15 Mar 23
💼 Business Marketing Promotion Entrepreneurship Research Platforms
  1. Successful launch of new platform ventures is crucial for expansion and innovation in online platforms.
  2. In platform industries, marketing involves more than just creating awareness; it's about coordinating market actors to shift from one equilibrium to another.
  3. Promoting new platforms should focus on creating expectations of a large future user base rather than revealing small current user numbers.

Five Platform Competition Trends to Watch in 2022

Platform Papers • 59 implied HN points • 24 Jan 22
🕹 Technology Platforms Regulation Curation Cryptocurrency Blockchain
  1. The platform economy is dominated by big players like Amazon and Apple, but they face increasing scrutiny for their dominance from antitrust agencies. Self-regulation could be an alternative to government intervention.
  2. Platforms are not just marketplaces; they play a significant role in curating products. They promote certain products strategically to shape their ecosystems and drive revenue.
  3. Complementors, who rely on platforms like Apple App developers, are starting to push back against platform dominance. Strategies like disintermediation and building competing platforms are being employed to reduce dependence on major platforms.

The Platformization of Brands

Platform Papers • 19 implied HN points • 09 Nov 22
💼 Business Brands Platforms Value Creation
  1. Brands are facing challenges in maintaining direct contact with consumers in the current platform era dominated by intermediaries like Amazon and Alibaba.
  2. To combat this, brands are creating their own platform offerings to establish intimate relationships with consumers and address their various needs associated with the core product.
  3. Managers transitioning to a flagship platform model must carefully plan their vision, strategic goals, and value creation processes to meet the diverse needs of consumers while relinquishing control in certain areas.

Platform Envelopment and Network Effects

Platform Papers • 19 implied HN points • 12 Oct 22
🕹 Technology Platforms Network Effects Market Competition
  1. Absorbing functionality from another platform can help solve the 'chicken-and-egg' problem in platform markets.
  2. Platform envelopment can make a platform more attractive to consumers by combining core functionalities from different platforms.
  3. Envelopment strategy can decrease a platform's reliance on available software while increasing its standalone value, providing a competitive edge against platforms with larger networks.

Introducing the Ecosystem

Developer GTM – by Calyx Consulting • 59 implied HN points • 17 Mar 21
🕹 Technology Platforms APIs
  1. Companies are recognizing the value of platforms to expand their business, but may lack talent or resources to build them.
  2. Building a successful platform involves challenges like fostering developer community, telling a compelling platform story, and driving adoption.
  3. Thriving platforms function as ecosystems where partners, developers, and the core platform benefit from each other.

Sensor Strategy, Monitoring Platforms

Dataplane.org Newsletter • 19 implied HN points • 04 Apr 22
🕹 Technology Platforms Infrastructure Networks Monitoring
  1. Sensor nodes monitor internet activity and contribute to data collection without generating traffic, resembling a mix of darknet collector and honeypot.
  2. Choosing hosting providers involves factors like unique origin, support for secure payment methods, provider reputation, and fraud detection practices.
  3. Monitoring platforms like Censored Planet, NLNOG Ring, OONI, and RIPE Atlas offer unique approaches to internet censorship measurement through distributed systems.

Platform Dependent Entrepreneurship: Navigating Precarity

Platform Papers • 19 implied HN points • 13 Apr 22
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Platforms Regulation Power Dynamics
  1. Platform-based entrepreneurship faces power imbalances and uncertainties inherent in platform economies, affecting complementors' risks and strategies.
  2. Entrepreneurs in platform markets must acknowledge the significant influence platforms hold over their businesses, leading to a high level of dependence.
  3. Multi-homing strategies, collective action, and engagement with regulatory bodies are crucial responses for platform-dependent ventures to mitigate risks and maintain agency.

Catching Fyre: Platform Diffusion and the Technology Strategy Toolkit

Platform Papers • 19 implied HN points • 16 Feb 22
🕹 Technology Platforms Adoption Innovation Networking
  1. Hackathons can help introduce new platform technologies by bringing developers together to collaborate and learn, ultimately boosting platform adoption.
  2. Temporary gatherings like hackathons provide a catalyst for technology platform companies to create positive buzz, align expectations, and accelerate platform growth through social learning and social coordination.
  3. Sponsoring temporary gatherings can be a strategic way for firms launching new platforms to attract initial users and complementors, but it's important to manage the sentiment that emerges from such events.

Platform power, by the numbers

SuperJoost Playlist • 1 HN point • 06 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Platforms Mobile Gaming Market dominance
  1. Platforms dominate the top of the games industry, with 8 out of 10 largest firms being platforms in 2022.
  2. Platforms have grown much faster in revenue compared to publishers, with a compound growth rate of 17% versus 2% respectively.
  3. Successful game studios are expected to bypass platforms, build their own communities, and focus on engaging their fanbase.