Lecture 5, How to Start a Startup: Peter Thiel
Companies like Facebook and Google are definitely not the last companies in their markets. Being in a monopoly position does not grant you magic protection from competitors. It probably even hurts more than it helps in the long term. Google and Facebook have not <i>radically</i> innovated since their inceptions. Google is still essentially a better AltaVista/Hotmail and Facebook is still essentially a better MySpace. And yet changes every day in the world make radically new approaches possible.<p>Zuckerberg did not pay $1 billion for Instagram and then $19 billion for WhatsApp because he wanted to. He did it because he believed they had a shot at replacing Facebook (and so did they).<p>Even Apple had to fight for its position with smart phones, which it practically invented. If Apple hadn't poured resources into keeping iPhone ahead of Android it would be absolutely dead today. Their monopoly began expiring the day it came into existence.<p>You either acquire and kill the competition or innovate and beat them in the market. Either way your monopoly doesn't protect you.