The 2014 Stratechery Year in Review
The 2014 Stratechery Year in Review
2014 was Stratechery’s second year, and what a momentous one it was! In April Stratechery became my full-time job , and although I made some quick changes to the model, it’s been a big success . It has certainly kept me busy: in 2014 I wrote 88 free articles, 169 Daily Updates, and recorded 41 podcasts (29 of them were Exponent episodes).
Here are the highlights (the 2013 edition is here ):
The Five Most-Viewed Articles:
- Peak Google – Google owns search, and will continue to do so. But the online ad market is about to get a lot bigger, and it’s not clear that Google will win. They may be eclipsed like Microsoft before them
- Apple Watch: Asking Why and Saying No – Apple Watch is beautiful and has many compelling features, but Apple never said why it exists. Has that led them to do too much? (Note that I later changed my mind: see What I Got Wrong About Apple Watch and Why Now for Apple Watch )
- Smartphone Truths and Samsung’s Inevitable Decline – All of the reasons to buy high-end Samsung phones are disappearing; Apple, meanwhile, will always have software-based differentiation and a big market to address
- It’s Time to Kill Surface – It’s important to evaluate products – like the Xbox and Surface – in the light of their original goals. If you do that, then it’s clear Surface has failed
- Two Microsofts – Making Mobile Office (nearly) free bring a lot of clarity to MIcrosoft’s business: it’s actually two different ones – consumer and enterprise
Five Big Ideas
- Messaging: Mobile’s Killer App – Messaging is the killer app on mobile, but only LINE and WeChat have created true platforms that are true multi-sided markets (in another happy coincidence, this post was written one day before Facebook acquired WhatsApp )
- Netflix and Net Neutrality – There are fundamental tradeoffs between broadband investment, non-discriminatory treatment of data, and unlimited access. Netflix depends on the third
- I wrote a three-part series on journalism in the Internet age: FiveThirtyEight and the End of Average , The Stages of Newspapers’ Decline , Newspapers are Dead; Long Live Journalism
- How Technology is Changing the World (P&G Edition) – P&G announced they are cutting their brand portfolio in half, and the changes wrought by technology – including social media and e-commerce – are why
- The State of Consumer Technology at the End of 2014 – The three epochs of computing to date – PC, web, and mobile – and what is next
Five Company-Specific Posts
- Twitter’s Marketing Problem – Twitter’s initial product was so good that they never went to the trouble of understanding their market, and now they are paying the price.
- It’s Time to Split Up Microsoft – Satya Nadella is saying all of the right things, but Microsoft’s culture has always been Windows first. The solution is to get rid of Windows
- How Apple Creates Leverage, and the Future of Apple Pay – How Apple Creates Leverage, and the Future of Apple Pay
- Best – Apple avoids disruption by creating a superior user experience. That requires focus, and any advice to the contrary doesn’t make sense
- Why Uber Fights – Big business is brutally competitive, and a very big business is exactly what Uber is fighting for. Their potential is absolutely massive
Five Daily Updates
(Please note that these are subscriber-only links – you can sign-up here )
- August 5 – Xiaomi Wins on More than Price, Micromax and Local Taste, Local Brands and Scale
- October 22 – The Disruption of IBM, An Alternate View of IBM’s 2015 Profit Goal, IMB Sells Fabs to Global Foundries
- November 12 – Taylor Swift vs Daniel Elk, What Swift Gets Right, The Problem with Spotify
- December 1 – Why Vox (and BuzzFeed) are Valuable, Outbrain Files for IPO
- December 2 – The Solo Selfie and its Cool Factor, The Donut Selfie and its Creator
Five Podcasts
- Exponent Episode 005: The World Has Changed – Not only has the Internet fundamentally changed winners-and-losers, but also the very nature of economic competition and the type of regulation that is required
- Exponent Episode 012: The Internet Rainforest – The Internet is enabling not only big winners, but also small, focused niche players, and why that’s exciting
- Exponent Episode 016: Naked People – James’ first ever trip to Burning Man, ugliness in modern culture and on the Internet, the new divide in politics, and ultimately why we have hope for the future
- Exponent Episode 024: A Celebratory Goblet of Champagne – The idea for Exponent was hatched when Ben and James were arguing about Ben’s article What Clayton Christensen Got Wrong a year ago. In this episode, we finally reach a resolution to the question about how Apple escapes disruption
- The Talk Show: Free Alcoholic Beverages – I joined John Gruber on The Talk Show where we talked about Samsung’s struggles, Xiaomi, wearables, and a whole lot more
Happy New Year. I’m looking forward to a great 2015.
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