As with most American enterprises, they must continue to grow -- indefinitely. They cannot be content to exist statically, even with whatever profit margins they currently have (if any).
I'm no economist, but this precept is obvious nonsense in the sense that nothing can grow indefinitely. And so things are subsumed by other things which therefore grow, or they morph into things that can continue to grow indefinitely.
SO is morphing into some other thing -- a quasi social/hiring/Q&A/team thing. Something, no doubt, that they can more easily monetize.
Most American companies are just normal small to mid-size businesses that happily exist for decades. Growth at all costs is the venture capital path and it's choice that requires the (completely expected) payoff for the investment.
The worst thing about this is that I'm _so completely uninterested_ in SO's stupid social/team/hiring product that will supposedly forever revolutionize the tech world.
I'm sure there are little teams of product managers and marketers just brimming with enthusiasm about it, but I have nothing but fatigue for these things anymore. It's not innovation, it's just more suckling at the enterprise teat.
I'm no economist, but this precept is obvious nonsense in the sense that nothing can grow indefinitely. And so things are subsumed by other things which therefore grow, or they morph into things that can continue to grow indefinitely.
SO is morphing into some other thing -- a quasi social/hiring/Q&A/team thing. Something, no doubt, that they can more easily monetize.