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The Future of the Internet Is Likely Smaller Communities

Discussion in 'Article Discussion' started by Melody Bot, Feb 27, 2025.

  1. Melody Bot Feb 27, 2025
    Melody Bot

    Your friendly little forum bot. Staff Member

    This article has been imported from chorus.fm for discussion. All of the forum rules still apply.

    The Verge:

    Smaller, purpose-driven communities are the future. The desire for smaller, more intimate communities is undeniable. People are abandoning massive platforms in favor of tight-knit groups where trust and shared values flourish and content is at the core. The future of community building is in going back to the basics. Brands and platforms that can foster these personal, human-scale interactions are going to be the winners.

    Seems like a good idea; someone should try it. Maybe we could call these things … forums?

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  2. Ryan Feb 27, 2025
    Ryan

    Might be Spider-Man...

    So you're telling me all it took was Twitter becoming a white nationalist hellscape for us to return to forums ? Thats all it took ? Oh, carry on then.
     
    Ferrari333SP likes this.
  3. RiseAgainst379 Feb 27, 2025
    RiseAgainst379

    Regular

    I'll believe it when I see it unfortunately. Big social media platforms have tons of intertia and will constantly be bringing in new younger users.
     
  4. Kal El Feb 28, 2025
    Kal El

    The sidewalks are watching me think about you.

    Honestly, I'd be down to return to Usenet newsgroups.
     
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  6. slickdtc Feb 28, 2025
    slickdtc

    Regular Supporter

    I think this is what you’ll see: veterans of forums returning after years trying to fit a square peg in a round hole on SM, and then first timers discovering the wider web of niche interests groups — hence why we’re getting these thinkpieces on forums and message boards more frequently it seems as the collective exasperation with SM increases. SM will still exist and dominate (a lot of money wrapped up in them now, too big to fail kind of) and attract newbies who are in awe of everything at their fingertips. But the retention will wane and we’ll get back to a more balanced offering.

    Smaller communities can sustain their creators (Jason would have better insight on this I’m sure), but they may not be the lucrative deal some SM has offered. Almost like small bands vs big bands — you can get by playing in a small band for a long time but it may be a bigger struggle. You can cash in on SM, but then you’ll probably lose a bit of control and credibility as you “sell out.”
     
    killahcam and artbynickferran like this.