Refusal of making money. This unusual behavior of two young game-changers, Dong and Evan, got the mobile industry confused and intrigued.
Regarding the traditional life cycle of a digital product, the definition of success used to be coming up with a brilliant yet simple idea, covering it with a sexy start-up story, getting lucky and being acquired by the giants before you become intimidating.
It seems like birth of such products and stories are still the same but the perception of ‘happy ending’ is shifting. The latest big and surprising acquisition was probably Instagram with the offer of $1 Billion, but with the ‘insane’ refusal of $3 Billion offer, Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel outshined above all. Refusal of money was about to become the new black.
With all the social media attention (Vines, tweets about how annoying and addictive the game is), it was time to shine for Flappy Bird. Idea: check, story: check, getting lucky: loading… 70%. Again the unusual happened and Dong Nguyen announced he will ‘take the game down’ because ‘he cannot take this anymore’.
Although there are obvious wins to these guys by those refusals, my attitude here will not be in line with ‘I see what you did there’ arrogance. Yes, those decisions can be acknowledged as ‘marketing schemes’. The refusal of $1 Billion offer brought the $3 Billion valuation to Snapchat. The expectation of a rapid increase on Flappy Bird downloads on the last day is also undeniable. But there also exists another undeniable fact: those decisions were risky. The last day downloads of Flappy Bird may not cover for the expected ad revenues or Snapchat may not be able to make $3 Billion soon. With that in mind, it is obvious that there is something more than making money here. The smell of audacity, confidence and a little bit of rebellion is in the air.
This independent and oblivious attitude of these ‘Generation Y’ folks is starting a new era for the digital and mobile industry. The person and the vision of the person becomes more crucial than the numbers. The power will not be the amount of money, the power will be influence. Because of the the pace of mobile trends, lifetime of products shrink. The investments must aim not only the product but also the vision and the people behind it to strengthen the impact. That is why entrepreneurs want and need money but not ‘only’ money. From a Marxist point of view, this new era carries indications about allowing creativity and courage to beat digital capitalism.
The industry is now on the verge of a big change, it certainly will be exciting to see how the traditional way of making billions will be reshaped by the youngsters.
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