&gt;Once effective technology exists to decentralize key aspects of the platform<p>This has been promised, at least, since the 90s. So far its really not happening. If anything the exact opposite is.<p>&gt;There needs to be a protocol to decentralize social the way bitcoin decentralized money.<p>In the currency wars, bitcoin isn&#x27;t even a player.  Its quite the niche, like FB alternative diaspora*. Heck, by now we should all have local copies of wikipedia and only do nightly diffs right? Everyone wants their own personal decentralized copy of wikipedia, right?<p>I think centralization is not only going to be popular due to cost savings and ease of management, but the natural way to go for information technology.  Complex systems often consolidate balkanized parts into larger wholes. This is also why we have ~200 countries instead of tens of thousands of city-states.  Or why so many markets in technology break down into natural monopolies&#x2F;duopolies.<p>The network effect, branding, lock-in, and minimizing customer confusion are fairly significant forces here on the customer end. Not to mention, the ability for large organizations to buy up smaller ones and also having the financial resources to soak up all the hot talent. From the abuse end of things, there&#x27;s defeating smaller competitors with crony capitalism like patent abuse or predatory pricing, both of which larger entities have an easier time of doing.