Apple Reportedly Interested in Acquiring 'The Fancy', a Pinterest Rival

[markcres]

Apple should just stick to making hardware and software. They are clearly like a bored rich kid...just buying up stuff for the hell of it.
Spend some of that money doing serious R&D innovation or giving your slaveworkers at Foxconn a payrise....stop wasting time and money on acquiring pointless ventures. Better still, if the money is burning a hole then try being philanthropic and funding charities like cancer and malaria.

 

[Tronic]

saying that in reply to my quote is a bit demeaning to women

I know my wife "pins" essentially any idea that she has that she wants to keep around and get reminded of later to help formulate ideas. Kind of like an internet cork/bulletin board. And then she can see other's ideas and collaborate off of that.

At least I think that's the idea. Like I said, not a user myself. But I know enough to disagree with the notion that it's a "QVC for internet users".

As an architecture student, this is exactly how I use Pinterest. For people in the design profession I think it's invaluable, if I have a client that's not so design savvy, I can tell them to go pin some stuff to get a better idea of what he/she wants.

Personally, I pin work for inspiration, to remind myself products I want to buy when I'm no longer in debt, to remind myself places I want to travel. Etc.

Before pinterest, I would save photos directly to my computer or rip them out of magazines. This is so much easier.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

I *hope* this is only a rumor. The iTMS was originally a "loss leader" in order to encourage people to buy iPods and Macs, (later other Apple devices). It just so happens Apple makes a little pocket change with it now.

But to buy a social media site with the prospects of making $ seems a bit like Apple taking its eye off the ball. I have noting against diversification, indeed, that is what saved Apple from certain doom, i.e., the iPod and the iOS devices that flowed from its success. The Fancy though seems more like "Me Too," unless that site has some sort of underlying technology or a great staff, and that is what Apple's target really is, not the site itself.

For the record, I don't really "get" social media. The people I know who use sites like Facebook are all college kids or younger. Same w/ Twitter, but add in adults in media that are trying to self-promote. Pintrest seems like the latest fad for women to show off their shoe collection, or professionals to show pics to the less tech saavy. I don't know any guys of any age that use it for fun.

It's nothing against social media. I understand it's huge with certain demographics, but as you get older and take on more real life responsibility you don't have time or desire to tweet your fav music or post pics of your best suit and tie.

So if this isn't a rumor, I have to wonder where Apple thinks it can take the Pinterest fad. Or are they just deking competitors with talk. Now that would be a hoot, except Google and Amazon are already in the space, and who gives a zip about MS right now.

 

[KnightWRX]

Seems all Apple wants to do nowadays is buy competitors rather than innovate their own ideas.

Apple has always done this. Every big company in tech does this. There is no "nowadays".

 

[Rogifan]

Apple should just stick to making hardware and software. They are clearly like a bored rich kid...just buying up stuff for the hell of it.
Spend some of that money doing serious R&D innovation or giving your slaveworkers at Foxconn a payrise....stop wasting time and money on acquiring pointless ventures. Better still, if the money is burning a hole then try being philanthropic and funding charities like cancer and malaria.

Slave workers? S T F U

----------

I *hope* this is only a rumor. The iTMS was originally a "loss leader" in order to encourage people to buy iPods and Macs, (later other Apple devices). It just so happens Apple makes a little pocket change with it now.

But to buy a social media site with the prospects of making $ seems a bit like Apple taking its eye off the ball. I have noting against diversification, indeed, that is what saved Apple from certain doom, i.e., the iPod and the iOS devices that flowed from its success. The Fancy though seems more like "Me Too," unless that site has some sort of underlying technology or a great staff, and that is what Apple's target really is, not the site itself.

For the record, I don't really "get" social media. The people I know who use sites like Facebook are all college kids or younger. Same w/ Twitter, but add in adults in media that are trying to self-promote. Pintrest seems like the latest fad for women to show off their shoe collection, or professionals to show pics to the less tech saavy. I don't know any guys of any age that use it for fun.

It's nothing against social media. I understand it's huge with certain demographics, but as you get older and take on more real life responsibility you don't have time or desire to tweet your fav music or post pics of your best suit and tie.

So if this isn't a rumor, I have to wonder where Apple thinks it can take the Pinterest fad. Or are they just deking competitors with talk. Now that would be a hoot, except Google and Amazon are already in the space, and who gives a zip about MS right now.

I hope this is just media/wall street obsession rumors. This would be a really dumb move. I sure hope Tim Cook is smarter than this.

 

[Daalseth]

I was under the impression that Pinterest has already established a pretty-much unassailable level of brand recognition.

FWIW I've never heard of it. Until this article I had no idea that it existed, for that matter I'm still not sure what it is for.

EDIT: OK I just spent ~10 minutes wandering around Pintrest. I still am not sure what it's for. It's a bunch of random pictures in no particular order. You can search for tags but most of what you get is only marginally related to your search. I did find one compelling image but I have a better success rate with a Google Image search. I just don't get it.

 

[tod]

It's just a web site for people who aspire to own stuff they don't currently own. BORING. Don't you people have enough? Aren't you satisfied? You don't need to replace your $1500 road bike with a $5000 road bike. You don't need yet another mango peeler. Your life is fine the way it is.

Besides, if Apple buys a social media site, it's guaranteed to languish and die (not that it wouldn't on its own). Apple does a great job at certain things. Chasing fads isn't one of them.

 

[shulerg]

So they make money either through ad space or by driving sales to online retail affiliates and taking a commission--and the 10% TheFancy takes seems high, especially since both sites seem to have had a lot of trouble communicating these costs to retailers. Plus these sites seem like unnecessary middlemen between you and what you want.

This whole social media/tech IPO bubble is about done. Once FB finishes its descent to $10/share and starts shedding real users in large numbers, the only IPOs will be companies (not all the features masquerading as companies today) with real business models. I'm tired of all these brogrammers founding companies on useless ideas in the hopes of an acquisition or venture capital. Create something great or go away.

Ok, rant over.

 

[louiek]

What items did Tim Cook Fancy? I'll bet there was a $5000 road bike and a new mango peeler on his list.

 

[Tycoonguy]

As a Fancy partner I noticed earlier today that Tim Cook has a verified account that's friends with some of the staff at the fancy.

Didn't think anything of it until now...

 

[BJMRamage]

Never heard of TheFancy before today. seems odd.

i use Pinterest. I heard about it and finally decided to see what it was about.
Inspiration Board, Mood Board, Cork Board of ideas it mainly it.

I use it mainly for Photography tips, and recipes to make (most have been tasty and I've used a few at different parties)

My wife uses it to "pin" ideas for the new baby's room (furniture, colors, etc) and can save ideas for things to do with our son.


Some use it to post quotes, clothes, vacations, home stuff, exercise, etc.
I would say 75+% of Pinterest is for things people aspire to do/go but never will.

 

[newagemac]

For the record, I don't really "get" social media.

What I don't get is all these people posting on forums that they "don't get social media." As if they don't understand the concept of why people might post stuff on the web for others to see or read. Hello??? What exactly are you doing on this forum then? Are you not posting your thoughts to a bunch of strangers on the web publicly?

It's nothing against social media. I understand it's huge with certain demographics, but as you get older and take on more real life responsibility you don't have time or desire to tweet your fav music or post pics of your best suit and tie.

Yet you just found the time and desire to write a long tweet post on this very forum. Twitter doesn't even let you post anything that long. Using your logic, the people who have the "real life responsibilities" are the ones on twitter and people who post on forums like Macrumors are just jobless slackers who have tons of time available then.

I'm not trying to single you out, it's just this general type of response I see whenever there is something social related to Apple posted here. I don't get it.

 

[Dr. McKay]

Well, if you ask me, TheFancy is just the posh version of Pinterest. Right up Apple's alley, then...

 

[roadbloc]

Apple has always done this. Every big company in tech does this. There is no "nowadays".

You misunderstood. I understand that Apple and everyone else have always done this. It may just be me, but I was simply commenting on that they appear to be doing it more often rather than just coming up with their own ideas and software.

It is getting easy to predict what Apple is up to, because they just buy a company. I swear they didn't do it this often before. I could be wrong. I have a bad memory.

 

[damir00]

A complete waste? What a stupid, irrational generalization.

What a wonderfully well thought out, rational counter argument.

 

[KnightWRX]

You misunderstood. I understand that Apple and everyone else have always done this. It may just be me, but I was simply commenting on that they appear to be doing it more often rather than just coming up with their own ideas and software.

It is getting easy to predict what Apple is up to, because they just buy a company. I swear they didn't do it this often before. I could be wrong. I have a bad memory.

Well, considering their biggest software releases have all been acquisitions in the last decade and a half, again, it's really no surprise.

OS X came from NeXT.
iTunes came from SoundJam.
DVD Studio came from Astarte.
Final Cut and all its components came from tons of different acquisitions.

Logic.
parts of iCloud.
iMaps...

etc..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mergers_and_acquisitions_by_Apple

Pretty much par for the course really. There's nothing new about this "method". Apple never really innovated out of the ether. Heck, they also use a ton of open source software. Webkit comes from the KDE project for example.

 

[roadbloc]

Well, considering their biggest software releases have all been acquisitions in the last decade and a half, again, it's really no surprise.

OS X came from NeXT.
iTunes came from SoundJam.
DVD Studio came from Astarte.
Final Cut and all its components came from tons of different acquisitions.

Logic.
parts of iCloud.
iMaps...

etc..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mergers_and_acquisitions_by_Apple

Pretty much par for the course really. There's nothing new about this "method". Apple never really innovated out of the ether. Heck, they also use a ton of open source software. Webkit comes from the KDE project for example.

Fair enough.

 

[617arg]

All this focus on "social" coming from Microsoft, Google, and Apple is getting to be a bit much. It just seems like there's this idea of a gold rush in data mining with no real focus on each company's core strengths.

 

[A MacBook lover]

Those that looked at The Fancy's website and judged it after two seconds as a Shopping network in HD are wrong.

It is nothing like that.

 

[denaliOnDubs]

I downloaded Pinterest... I thought it was stupid. I have a feeling this service is stupid too.

 

[MacFan23]

Those that looked at The Fancy's website and judged it after two seconds as a Shopping network in HD are wrong.

It is nothing like that.

I've been a user since last year (got into their mailing list somehow) and it basically is just that. Unless you'd like to point out anything special it offers that I've been missing?

 

[Daalseth]

I took a look at The Fancy

It's like looking at one of those upscale catalogs you get around Xmas or the inflight catalog you see on an airliner. Lot's of stuff nicely photographed. Don't really need any of it but some was cool. Then I saw to "Fancy" something you have to use Twitter or FaceBook. FAIL. Ain't gonna happen, not with me anyway.

I guess I'm not the target market.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

What I don't get is all these people posting on forums that they "don't get social media." As if they don't understand the concept of why people might post stuff on the web for others to see or read. Hello??? What exactly are you doing on this forum then? Are you not posting your thoughts to a bunch of strangers on the web publicly?




Yet you just found the time and desire to write a long tweet post on this very forum. Twitter doesn't even let you post anything that long. Using your logic, the people who have the "real life responsibilities" are the ones on twitter and people who post on forums like Macrumors are just jobless slackers who have tons of time available then.

I'm not trying to single you out, it's just this general type of response I see whenever there is something social related to Apple posted here. I don't get it.

Well, I suppose before one goes on a rant about people who don't "get" social media the ranter should understand what "social media" is, no?

Social media is not everything on the web. It's typically Web 2.0 sites which are known for there interactive and collaborative nature, and most importantly, to give the poster a reward - a like, a follower, a mayor of, etc.

Forums, like this one, do not fall into that category. They have been around in some form since before the Web or even the dial-up services (CompuServe, AOL) before the web. Maybe the term BBS rings a bell, maybe not.

Also there is a difference, I think, between, posting ideas on forums and posting personal details and "checking in". I don't feel the need to know where my friends are every moment of the day or to get a alert every time they post a blase picture, or they have some obtuse thought they must share with all their followers. That is the heart of social, not mere commenting.

Next to not "getting" social media, I don't get people, like you, who get upset by people who don't fully appreciate their hobbies. By your comment you appear to be an avid fan of the social. Hey, I have no problem with that. All my nieces and nephews in college and HS are on FB b/c it's needed for an actual social life with flesh and blood people, not avatars. I get that. It's not for me. I never said it's not for everyone - that is why I said I don't get it, as in, maybe I'm the wrong person to analyze Apple getting deeper into social.

 

[Daalseth]

Well, I suppose before one goes on a rant about people who don't "get" social media the ranter should understand what "social media" is, no?.

Very well put. You do need to define what social media is and how it is used in the modern sense. I also don't "get" the modern concept of social media. I tried FaceBook for a year and found it uninteresting. I really didn't need to see young relatives posting about getting hammered at a party or my other relatives and friends posting pictures of babies throwing up. I've been FaceBook free for a year now and I don't miss it in the slightest. For the longest time I found Twitter to be mostly vacuous. Just last month I did found this RealTimeWWII feed that has been a lot of fun reading. I don't post myself though and when it ends in five years I'll likely kill that account. I tried LinkedIn last year while I was out of work. Other than ads for party girls in Dubai, posts from other IT professionals looking for work, and posts from LinkedIn telling me how critical LinkedIn was I got nothing of value. That account I closed as soon as I got another job. Ping I disabled as soon as I could find a way to exorcize it from my iTunes, but I don't think I'm alone on that. I'm currently using Tumblr as a resource. I post long essays and short stories but nothing else and don't really comment on anything or follow anyone. I use it like a more open "forum" or a "blog" where I can post links to my pieces and artwork. Nothing personal though.

So no I don't "get" social media, as it's currently defined either.

 

[gginisty]

@skellener,
I've heard this tune before, when there was rumors of an "Apple phone"