As part of the Future of Facebook Project and Open Foresight process, we’re asking the crowd for their opinions and forecasts on the same 15 questions we’ve asked our interviewees. Questions are posted on Quora, but can also be answered here on the blog or on our Facebook Page.
Here are some interesting and thought-provoking answers we’ve seen so far. We’ll be integrating our favorites into the final video series, so add your thoughts and join us as producers of the future!
1. Social Graph & Sentiment Data Usage
I believe the biggest issue facing Facebook is how it chooses to use the massive amounts of data it collects on everyone of us. Facebook is a unique window into our minds and has the potential to know what we want even before we do. How it chooses to capitalize on this fact and the tools it builds could propel commerce, content and communication for the next 5 to 10 years.
– John Hazard
2. Partnerships with Brands
Let’s face it – brands are the ones who are bringing the revenue. But as of today, Facebook has a very closed-in environment with very limited support for brands and limited consideration for brands’ needs. They have also been missing some key things brands are looking for (like capability to easily segment audience within one fan page for the brand to avoid defragmented fans base/presence across Facebook, etc).
– Ekaterina Walter
3. Higher Education
The London School of Business is already offering an International MBA delivered via a Facebook App…. The quality of Facebook Higher Education delivery will be no better or worse than current online and blended online and face-to-face courses already being offered by universities. The difference is that instead of using walled off course management tools offered by universities and publishers, Facebook will deliver an open and transparent education that allows more real time interaction and collaboration with experts in the outside world. Students will not be limited by location and will shift to educational brands that deliver quality social experiences online forcing many local and regional Higher Education institutions out of business in the next five years. The world will truly be the classroom.
– Dr. William J. Ward
4. Signal to Noise Ratio
I think a major issue going forward for Facebook, and other social sites, will be finding a better way to sift out relevant posts from noise. We’re all guilty of following / friending more people than we actually care about. Social graphs contain invaluable personal data; being able to analyze that data and make content more meaningful, contextual and separate value from the noise will be critical as social networks continue to explode .
– Mike Beauchamp
5. How We See Ourselves and the World
…my focus tends to be on the utility of FB and its popularity as a vehicle for emergent properties… it will be interesting to not only see how social media continues to play a part in physical protests against oppressive governments worldwide, but how that same spirit of revolution loops back into the virtual world and online psyche – a place where we are only beginning to understand the implications of global connectivity (i.e. virtual cities of thought/memes that supercede physical city, national, corporate and cultural boundaries; open source educational models and the reframing of “learning”; speculative gaming as a means for simulation/big picture solutions; etc.).
– Frank W. Spencer IV
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Add your views to the Future of Facebook Project topic on Quora!
Check out our kickstarter video here
Thanks to Producers Sean Park, Dr. William Ward, and Debra Farber, and to all supporters of the Future of Facebook Project!
