The Rise of the Open Social Web
A New Era in Online Communication
A tech industry veteran, Mike McCue, is challenging the dominance of social media’s automated grip on our attention, betting that humans, not machines, should curate online experiences. As the CEO of Flipboard, McCue is positioning his company’s new Surf browser as part of a growing community of decentralized social media options, alongside emerging platforms like Bluesky and Mastodon.
A Decentralized Future
The timing could be fortuitous, as online publishers struggle with an old problem and a new threat. For years, they have worried that the internet’s middlemen, huge platforms like Facebook and TikTok, have weakened their ties with the people who read or view their material. Now, publishers face another issue: New A.I. systems that could completely eliminate those fraying links with their audiences.
The Power of ActivityPub
With the aid of several internet technical standards that encourage the growth of a new kind of social media, McCue has created a potential path where media companies can build direct relationships with readers. One of these new standards is ActivityPub, a protocol that allows social media platforms to talk to one another, allowing users on different networks to interact seamlessly – similar to how email works across different providers.
A New Era of Advertising
The most significant potential of the open social web is that it will permit companies to step away from invasive advertising, McCue said. He describes the alternative as "contextual" advertising to particular interests rather than individuals. For example, ads can be posted to web feeds focused on topics such as backpacking or fashion.
The Future of Online Publishing
In addition to Meta’s decision to base Threads on ActivityPub, news organizations like Bloomberg and the BBC have begun experimenting with the technology, as have blogging platforms such as Medium, WordPress, and Ghost. ActivityPub has also led to a wave of start-up efforts such as Mastodon, a microblogging service that now has more than 14 million accounts connected by a network of over 14,000 host computers.
Conclusion
The transition from centralized to decentralized models will require a cultural shift among both publishers and audiences. While there are significant product questions to solve, such as how to handle moderation and content discovery in a decentralized environment, the early adopters remind some internet pioneers of the first few years of the World Wide Web – a time when anything seemed possible, and innovation was around every corner.
FAQs
Q: What is the open social web?
A: The open social web is a decentralized social media platform that allows users to communicate and share information without relying on a single centralized service.
Q: What is ActivityPub?
A: ActivityPub is a protocol that allows social media platforms to talk to one another, allowing users on different networks to interact seamlessly – similar to how email works across different providers.
Q: What are the benefits of the open social web?
A: The open social web allows for more direct and meaningful engagement between publishers and their audience, as well as a shift away from invasive advertising and towards contextual advertising.
