View the business model of Mashup from the VC perspective

1. What is mashup?
Mashup is a combination of two or more web applications that use public or private databases to form an integrated application. Generally, the API interface of the source application or some RSS outputs (including atom) are used as the content source. There is no limit on the technology used by the merged web application. The word may come from music, such as hotstop A + B and AMV.

Mashup is already a popular method in foreign countries. I think there are some famous gatherings including Microsoft mix06 and mashup camp. There are many applications and APIs that can be used. You can query the corresponding information from the mashupfeed site. The most famous applications are map applications. For more information, see mapbuilder, in addition, several companies have provided well-developed map interfaces and content, such as Google's Mars map and Microsoft's 3D (stimulated by it, Google acquired a 3D company yesterday.

Mashup can also be used as a gathering of ideas, said Wang jianshuo:

This is an interesting way to discover new things. Try a + B. If not, try C + D again? If there are no new things available, try a + C, B + d ...... Infinite combinations. (From future Idea Factory, I translated it)

Isaac said:

A matrix is required to list all new things on the horizontal or vertical axis. The intersection is innovative and simple. (For Web 2.0, matrix already has, http://www.programmableweb.com /Matrix)

This is a mashup method.

2. mashup Culture
David Berlind, the organizer of mashup camp, uses computer2.0 to describe it, or uncomputer, or wwww (4 w, the computer we know has passed (uncomputer). Instead, they are replaced by a series of APIS (based on the Internet) and database interfaces, just like interfaces and services provided by google/yahoo/ebay/technorati/microsoft/amazon. Those who combine these Apis at this stage are called mashup artists. Is the upper-level people in the combination.

Mashup camp, also known as unconference (unconference can be referred to as the article only mentioned. The ban will be held in, with a mixed reputation. If any article is meaningless, you can read the original article of davewiner, the article can be followed by a link through the firewall). The goal is to do the opposite in other web2.0-style meetings. Most of the participants are really creative with low costs, and there are problems that can be found in practical applications or services. People involved are not limited to innovative, creative, and creators.

Mashup has gained great popularity among the geek group and Internet players. mashup may not require high programming skills, but only needs to be familiar with api and network service methods for development, so it soon became a popular network phenomenon. Many companies, such as yahoo/google, provide open interfaces to attract this group.

Some time ago, the steamed buns should also belong to a mashup. Director Chen Kaige turned too much. It is said that a Hong Kong director gave the film to Hu Ge for mashup. However, this is not enough. The film issuer can open some of its uncut content or highlights for its fans to implement mashup.

3. Doubts about the business model

Richard MacManus mentioned the Oodle example, which uses the craigslist data source, but craigslist does not recognize oodle at last. There are many similar applications on the Internet. The Service side uses explicit or non-explicit data sources. An application like oodle is called a "website scraper ", it is equivalent to using the site data for your own use. Furthermore, we can give an example of a Bidder's Edge lawsuit against spider by ebay. Although ebay has done similar operations for a long time, it references and uses data, it may span across the minefield, making the application a "scraper" edge application.

Mashup may also have a parasitic problem, that is, these applications are parasitic on a series of network combinations or services, and the dependence on these services is too strong. Mashup applications must be lightweight companies or individuals. If these companies and individuals grow sufficiently, they will grow to be sufficient to threaten the data sources and api providers they use. The problem began to emerge. What's more, this is especially true when the services used by these applications are advantageous or monopolized.

Some people say that companies like google/yahoo and amazon serve as data sources and APIs, but we need to carefully examine their attitudes towards mashup. Yahoo proactively blocks a mashup site that uses the google maps service at the same time. amazon has also notified Taylor of Amazon Light not to link to competing sites. This is a very obvious signal: You can play, don't hurt me. (Originally, don't treat me as your toe)

Greg Linden talked about mashup at the end of 05, and said that web2.0 is not just mashup. The company provides webservice for free idea, and explores possible R & D and potential talents. That is why many APIs limit the number of clicks per day for non-commercial purposes, or there is no good quality assurance. It is like a kind of gift at a store discount. It cannot be refunded without repair. GregLinden is the author of the original amazon data mining system. Now we have a personal portal similar to meme, Findory.com. I want to use the cluster technology. I hope someone will write this in China as soon as possible, A few days ago, tangos has provided me with a foreign service that aggregates similar Chinese characters.

4. View mashup from the vc perspective
Although these problems are too harsh for mashup, as a leapfrog analyst who was involved in the company's operation and business model in the very early days, this is not unexpected, but reasonable. This is a judgment on whether mashup is a toy or a real business, and whether mashup is a feature (mashup-as-feature) or a business (mashup-as-business.

OK. After I repeat these questions briefly, I will summarize them.
1) add value?
Mashup is built on other sites. Ebay is a business, Craigslist is a business. If mashup can be used as a business, it needs to have increased value on the original application. Value-added here refers to the need for proprietary data, proprietary logic, or both. In general, adding the two together rarely gives enough value to build a business. He gave an example, saying that it is like buying a cpu, a hard disk, or a motherboard to build a computer business. It is purely easy to assemble, but it has little value unless you are a dell.

Of course, many of China's computer businesses are established in this way, so let's call their businesses mashup, haha.

2) Whether real applications have been created
Integrate 4-5 sites to cover the user experience for specific consumers. It sounds straightforward, but there are two key factors. First, browser-based applications are not so easy to integrate. Ajax training for each data source is one way, but maintaining the status between different data sources requires support for longer transactions for client applications. In addition, you need to download more client code in these methods.

3) Simplify every step
Take buying a house as an example. You can search for houses, compare neighboring areas, search for loans, qualification certification, and applications. You want to optimize them one by one, rather than the overall optimization. The real problem is that the business has been simplified in the process, and it is difficult to add value to the process change. Even if possible, it will be adopted by the source site, mashup is part of the source site process exploration.

4) the real business model is hard to mashup
When you use others' APIs, you become a reseller to a certain extent and provide a release method for their services. Some web services do not provide commercial purposes. Even if they are provided, they grow and grow. The business built on them is fragile and difficult to integrate.

Of course, it is not anti-mashup. mashup may be very useful. However, it can only be used to create a special user experience, rather than building an independent business.

5. What exactly does mashup bring?
Fun: First, it brings fun, and the cost of entry is low because of the use of open tools and data for aggregation. So how can we use it to make money or use it better?

Richard MacManus of readwriteweb made a comprehensive comment (hint by tangos). Although he also called this business model, we should be cautious.

1) Advertisement
It is obvious that mashup can be used to add advertisements.
The example is Simplyhired, which is a mashup for vertical search. Professional data sources are collected from other web pages, plus google maps, linkedin, etc.

2) Guiding or joining services
Dude, Where's My Used Car? Developed by an ebay developer. Ebay's car used for auction and google maps mashup can find a second-hand car that is very close to a location. All the search results point to ebay, and you can share part of the cost by relying on the ebay franchise service.

3) transactional mashup
In the example of selling cars above, if the purchase is completed on the mashup site, there is no profit or loss for ebay. In this way, many transaction-type mashups can be created to complete transactions on MashUps, while the actual products are provided by ebay.

4) Other Modes
This includes subscription and transaction-based payment. In short, it is basically to promote the business of the source site and share the interests of the source site. Whether these can be called business models is of course a matter of opinion.

6. A few more things
1) You should consider opening the mashup interface.
If you provide network services, you should consider opening up the mashup interface. Cgi seems a little outdated. Although it was often used to create a data-based website in the early days, webservices are popular. Yahoo Released photo, calendar, shopping and other interfaces for mashup in March. jeffreymcmanus also made a high profile and taught everyone to use yahoo's technology in innovative ways.

Amazon provides s3 service, called simple network storage. Although it is a paid service, tangos and I have never figured out what amazon is doing with this service, but it became a member of the amazonwebservice family, it is also a key member. This service will not only become a mashup interface, but also become a key service for amazon to create a programmable Internet and transform the Internet structure in amazon's way.

You should consider opening up the mashup interface.

2) The word mashup will be abused soon.
The definition of mashup is not very clear. Chinese Internet brothers certainly will not limit it to the use of two web services as another source application. However, it will be widely used. For example, yesterday, it was only used to say that Hu ge had no promise but mashup. To put it wider, we will bring up Xu Jinglei, keso, and Lao Luo mashup to make the best blog.

Another possible abuse method is to talk about a website. For example, A says douban is A website created by mashup, and uses the business model of mashup only. B said how douban is A mashup, then not only attack A, but also attack.

3) mashup will promote entrepreneurship anxiety
The increase in mashup will actually lead to entrepreneurial anxiety, because mashup is lightweight and fast and can be used for some application, sometimes interesting and eye-catching.
In addition, mashup will enable everyone to raise their existing mashups when starting a business to see if they have already done so. This is also a source of anxiety.