Linkedin looks like Facebook Now. Here’s Why.

A few days ago, I opened up my Linkedin profile and was greeted with a Facebook clone. It seems like websites are all pushing towards a singular design that is mobile first — fat headers and cute icons are all the rage now. But that’s not because these designers are part of a cabal bent on taking over the world with eye-catching designs.

It’s because Google is really pushing Progressive Web Apps, a way to fix the distribution problems faced by app development. The costs involved in app development and the resulting overhead can kill profitability. To fix this, web apps are becoming more and more mobile friendly. Why spend millions on app development when you can create an app-like experience on the web? You can then leverage service workers to allow people to access your site offline.

Here’s a quote from Google:

The hardest problem with software is distribution. App developers often spend more on distribution than they earn back. This problem is solved by the web platform, however web apps have historically been less capable than native apps. With the advent of PWA’s, web apps have become just as capable as native, supporting features such as push notifications and Add to Home Screen, without giving up the reach of the web.