Facebook isn't the Next Pets.com

A lot of people over the past couple years have suggested that facebook will eventually flame out - once the hype gets too much and the profits don't appear.

Well, it turns out they are wrong. Facebook is profitable, and has 300 Million users.

50 million new users in the last 75 days.

Wow.

So they aren't going anywhere. In fact, it appears to have become part of the daily/weekly social interaction cycle. People understand the privacy issue, but the benefits outweigh the risks. It's much easier to share and stay involved in your friends/family's lives.

Some thoughts going forward:

• facebook is flickr+myspace+blogger+email+games+etc. Sounds like a platform. Is it already? (hint: yes)
  
• With the advances in the mobile space - will the line between privacy and social benefit become more difficult? Think: facebook adds google lattitude - you can now see where your friends physically are at any moment....even if your phone doesn't have GPS.
• Facebook competition: it's going to be really, really, really hard to unseat facebook. Probably just as hard, if not harder, than google for search.
• What is the net impact on culture, both locally and globally? This is a degree of sharing never seen before...how will this change us?
  
• What is the "facebook for business" answer? There are many, many startups out there trying to answer this, and I think they're mostly wrong.