I’m sure it was related - everyone got really focused on the bottom line then – but I think they also had the problem that ads were so successful that it became hard to even consider other models because ads just instantly generate money, and a lot of their attention seemed to focus on that sit-and-consume model rather than, say, getting serious about building tools people would subscribe to.
G-Suite is kind of sad that way because there was some cool technology and initial goodwill but they just kind of coasted and slowly gave the market away to Microsoft, I think because the fountain of ad dollars meant nobody was worried about their bonus being cancelled or their shares going down significantly.
G-Suite is kind of sad that way because there was some cool technology and initial goodwill but they just kind of coasted and slowly gave the market away to Microsoft, I think because the fountain of ad dollars meant nobody was worried about their bonus being cancelled or their shares going down significantly.