

Microsoft May Buy Email Startup Xobni - mhartl
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/29/microsoft-may-buy-email-startup-xobni/

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fiaz
Is the old model of the 80s/90s a good model where Microsoft is the big fish
that either swallows everybody (for a price of course) or pushes them out of
the pond altogether?

Contrast the "Microsoft model" with the "Apple model". If Xobni was a startup
that added the same amount of value exclusively to Mail.app, then it would
increase the overall diversity of applications for OSX (not to mention
quality); granted, the fact that OSX isn't as popular as Windows might be
factor with how Xobni/Mail.app might grow, but for the sake of illustrating
the necessity of diversity when it comes to competition, let's put that on the
side. On OSX, you have a number of excellent independent developers that add
value to OSX thus increasing the number of things you can do with the OS. No
doubt, there is absolutely nothing on OSX that you cannot do on Windows
(forgive the double negative). But the fact that Microsoft is the big fish,
independent developers need to be wary of the big fish by either getting
bought out (good) or competing against them (most of the time VERY bad). Btw,
a similar phenomenon is happening on the Web with Google, but we have yet to
see how this is played out...

The "Microsoft model" is monolithic. As a result of the best case scenario
playing out more often than not, if you show promise as an independent
developer Microsoft will buy you out, thus decreasing the number of
independent developers that have innovative ideas and increasing the number of
crappy third-party software available (I will add that the fact that Windows
is so ubiquitous might have something to do with this last opinion). Microsoft
maintains dominance and every innovative idea out there eventually becomes a
Microsoft department - slow, boring, and part of Microsoft. This is bad for
Microsoft and ultimately bad for consumers.

OmniGroup is a real-life example of how the "Apple model" encourages
independent developers such that they let them exist without the need for
Apple to purchase them. Their suite of tools would really fit in well with
some of Apple's offerings; but Apple doesn't buy them out because it is to
Apple's benefit for OmniGroup to exist outside of Apple as an example of what
you can do with OSX (as an independent developer), without having to worry
about outside competition from Apple. Another example would be Delicious
Monster. Apple benefits from the well being of outside developers as these
developers add value in a way that encourages diversity. Small groups of
devotees pop up around such outside developers and this ultimately trickles up
to Apple in a positive way.

Xobni is an extremely well engineered piece of software, which probably
required a high level of expertise to create; and this highlights another
point: there is a high level of technical ability that is required to push the
Windows platform in an overall innovative direction for independent
developers. Whereas Apple makes it easier to develop/deliver a finished
product, on Windows it is more difficult to compete against a Microsoft-made
application. Simply put, the barriers to entry (development-wise) are
significantly lowered on OSX than they are on Windows (I simply do not believe
that OSX developers are more competent than Windows developers!). Microsoft
certainly gives you tools to create some cool stuff _if you have the
development mojo/kungfu to use it well_ (as is exemplary with Xobni). Apple
gives you tools that allow for easier/rapid development so that you can get
your ideas to market gracefully.

That said, I wish the best for everybody involved in Xobni. No doubt getting
bought out would be a big score for them and the Ycombinator folks! You guys
have accomplished more than what I could hope for and all the best to you.

~~~
Tichy
I fail to see a difference between Microsoft and Apple (except for design
skills). It's not like Microsoft bought each and every company that created a
software product for windows. And there are software companies that Apple
bought, killing their windows branch in the process (ie Logic, which is now
Apple only).

~~~
fiaz
I think one big difference between the two is that you don't hear much about
"Apple buyout" rumors as opposed to the frequency you do hear about "Microsoft
buyout" rumors. I also alluded to the fact that there is an analogous
phenomenon beginning to emerge with "Google buyout" rumors and internet
startups.

Btw, I hope I'm not coming off as saying that Apple is saintly in their
business practices. I'm mainly saying that it is evident to me (hence it is my
opinion, not an imposed fact) that Apple does more to encourage diversity with
third party developers and such diversity is overall synergistic.

I also hope that people don't perceive my question above as being a troll
against Xobni/Ycombinator! I'm just asking a general question.

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wallflower
What if Microsoft bought Xobni and let them pursue integration with other
email clients and services? Via exposing some of their key APIs and/or
something un-Microsoft like (pushing open standards for email data mining,
with Xobni being the first example)

If not... Consider for a few moments what would happen if Google developed
some hook APIs (e.g. getTimelineOfAllContactsForPerson, maybe even in Python)
in GMail to allow developers to build Gadgets and then maybe later CRM'esque
applications. Labels instead of folders (which I think came from the domain of
records management) is a nice start - picture being able to datamine your own
information).

For example, follow-up is an important part about networking. I'd love a tell-
me-who-is-overdue-for-a-once-every-three-month-what's-new-contact, without
requiring me to manually set an alert. (Think hyper-personalized Google News)
Imagine that as a mobile app (who around me have I lost touch with and is open
to re-contacts)

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projectileboy
To the Xobni guys, I happily stand corrected on my previous predictions of
doom and gloom! I hope congratulations will be in order soon.

~~~
angstrom
Same here. I hope it works out for them because I don't see too many other
options that would generate positive value for a company.

Google could probably implement it on their own (not to trivialize the work,
but to point out that Gmail basically has all the information and fast search,
they just need to mine the contact network).

The typical Yahoo user probably wouldn't care for it.

That said, it would be an ironic purchase for MS, because from my standpoint
they already bought and burried the search tech with LookOut to push their
Desktop search client. But that's for MS to justify, not Xobni.

------
systems
"Microsoft may have first approached the company months ago and floated an
offer of sub $20 million, which was apparently rejected"

Wow, they are aiming for more than 20 mil, if they get it, well, we should all
start creating products for MS ... to buy... I personally think, only MS can
have use of this program, I doubt xobni will ever have any serious clients in
the enterprise, they product is ... not that usefull in my opinion! And it
target totally the wrong paradigm, more power in an non web client, this is
useless, the correct place for this functionality is an enterprise portal! not
outlook

~~~
RyanGWU82
What exactly is "incorrect" about improving desktop software?

~~~
systems
well, I was mainly thinking, that more apps should move to the browser,
especially apps that dont need to have a complex UI.

And a xobni is a social networking app, the web-browser seems like a very good
fit for it!

Well ... ultimatly its subjective ... it just how I think, "if you can put it
in the browser, do, if you don't, your did wrong"

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nextmoveone
At FOWA the panel for create a web app in 45 minutes really revolved around
email analytics and status

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staunch
Good luck to the Xobni guys.

