AOL will never own the Internet. The beautiful thing about the Internet is that no one will ever own it. Slashdot will not disappear, even if AOL/Time Warner wanted it to. AOL merely tries to provide its customers with quality content and a means for getting to it. They could try to limit what all of their customers see, but they would lose more than they could gain from doing that. Imagine if Sony tried to sell television sets that only tuned to three or four channels. People would buy another brand. AOL/Time Warner is in a similar predicament. They will continue to let their customers access the entire Internet because they have to.
True, as the Internet becomes more and more accessible, Slashdot and other niche sites will attract a smaller and smaller amount of the net public as a percentage, but in truth, there will actually be more and more people coming to the niche sites. If someone has an interest in a particular subject, he will always be able to look to the web for answers.
If AOL decides that it only cares about the mainstream, then that is their business. As long as there are people willing to provide content to a more focused group, that group will have the option of coming. They might even prosper if AOL continues to miscalculate the power of focus. At any rate, future generations will not be deprived of Slash-like sites. Look at television. When I was growing up, there were 4 channels available in my house. Then came cable, which brought that number to almost eighteen channels. It was difficult to imagine a world with much more than that. I couldn't tell you how many channels are available today. The Media Giants have figured out that by focusing on a narrower group, they can attract people and make money. In the future, more niche sites will be available, not less. AOL cannot stop the future.
Slashdot Mirror
AOL will never own the Internet. The beautiful thing about the Internet is that no one will ever own it. Slashdot will not disappear, even if AOL/Time Warner wanted it to. AOL merely tries to provide its customers with quality content and a means for getting to it. They could try to limit what all of their customers see, but they would lose more than they could gain from doing that. Imagine if Sony tried to sell television sets that only tuned to three or four channels. People would buy another brand. AOL/Time Warner is in a similar predicament. They will continue to let their customers access the entire Internet because they have to.
True, as the Internet becomes more and more accessible, Slashdot and other niche sites will attract a smaller and smaller amount of the net public as a percentage, but in truth, there will actually be more and more people coming to the niche sites. If someone has an interest in a particular subject, he will always be able to look to the web for answers.
If AOL decides that it only cares about the mainstream, then that is their business. As long as there are people willing to provide content to a more focused group, that group will have the option of coming. They might even prosper if AOL continues to miscalculate the power of focus. At any rate, future generations will not be deprived of Slash-like sites. Look at television. When I was growing up, there were 4 channels available in my house. Then came cable, which brought that number to almost eighteen channels. It was difficult to imagine a world with much more than that. I couldn't tell you how many channels are available today. The Media Giants have figured out that by focusing on a narrower group, they can attract people and make money. In the future, more niche sites will be available, not less. AOL cannot stop the future.
-c.l.mayfield