Interesting article by Tom Tunguz of Redpoint Ventures in ExPostFacto today about the growing dominance of the top 10 websites on the web (article: Ramifications of web traffic concentration for startups). Tunguz asserts that the concentration of content and the corresponding ad views are making harder-and-harder for smaller upstart websites (for example, StartUp Beat) to compete. This is not a new argument but the evidence is compelling. What might the consequences be? Tunguz argues that smaller web competitors may turn to the mobile web—a valid alternative, particularly as mobile usage grows exponentially. The other consequence, Tunguz argues, will be growing consolidation in the content business.
Is the web still a viable place for content producers to operate? Clearly, innovation will always drive new technologies and new approaches to media. However, based on the increasingly growing power of big web-based companies (Google, Facebook, etc.), that are very willing to grow through acquisition, the PC-based web may not be the entrepreneurial haven it once was.
