What happened to Vero, the social network that was going to unseat Facebook?

A few weeks ago "arrived" - intercom because I had been online for years - a new social network called Vero . His motto was none other than "True Social", and promised to be configured as a feasible alternative to the gigantic Facebook . Surely remember how almost all digital media were filled with publications talking about it, and how thousands of people embarked on the adventure of trying this new social network. But what happened to her? Well ... what was expected , although it is a shame.

The company published a manifesto with its vision, and some of its premises were that they would not implement filtering algorithms, nor would they have censorship, nor would they trade with your data, nor would it be free. Four premises that, on a personal level, seem to me most successful. However, Vero, whose origin dates back to Russia and Saudi Arabia, has been deflated with the same force that Google Allo or Pokémon GO deflated

The first days of the Vero boom were characterized by tweets like the one you have above and people complaining that they couldn't register . The servers were saturated several times because, theoretically, only the first million users could register for free. Then they expanded this limit ad infinitum , and the topic was never heard. It was a good claim , to the point that Vero placed himself in the top positions of the App Store and Google Play. Today, Vero is below the 200 most popular apps . What failed?

A good idea that brings nothing new to the average user

The main problem is the same as always It is a rare mix between Facebook and Instagram that, eye, is interesting, but it has the problem that it cannot compete in number of users , ergo, it ends up getting bored. On a personal basis, only a few acquaintances, techies, had a Vero account and, of them, only a few published something daily. The question, therefore, is: Why should I install Vero when I already have all my contacts on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp? The answer is complicated.

It could be argued that for privacy, because it has no filters, etc, etc, etc, but a social network is not social if it does not have people , and this is Vero's main problem, which also becomes a vicious circle: In the absence of people to follow, potential users will not register because they will not be able to follow anyone> The media and influencers will not register because there are no users to show the content and ROI (return on investment ) is very low> As there are no media or influencers, users have no reason to register , and so on indefinitely.

It is exactly the same thing that happened to Vine when Instagram enabled the function of uploading videos, the same thing that happened to Snapchat when Instagram put the Stories and the same thing that happened to Google Allo when it was launched and wanted to compete against WhatsApp. All of them are good ideas , but the average social media user cares between zero and nothing that Vero doesn't have algorithms, because what an average social media user wants is to see his friends and influencers . The rest does not matter.

One more proof that nobody can knock Facebook down

Vero has been a beautiful adventure , and I recognize that I loved it and that I used it almost daily. I loved being able to share books, movies, series, links and photos, but on many occasions I felt that I was talking to a wall , that there was no one on the other side. Why invest time in a minority social network when that same time, invested in another social network, will give you better results?

Facebook has become, much to my dismay, owner and lady of social networks . It has users and has the capacity to innovate - or copy and sell it as an innovation - what else does the user who only uploads selfies to Instagram need? The same can be seen in the Snapchat Case , in Telegram , in Ello and in Peach. All of them are great bets, they all have good ideas, but they all sin in lack of users - even if they are counted by millions.

An idea that should be copied

Vero has fallen out of favor , as expected. Maybe it's too early to talk right now, but Google search trends speak for themselves. Vero had a peak and returned to the shadow. Point. However, this social network has left an idea in the air quite interesting, and is to pay for being a member. What would happen if the 2.1 billion Facebook users paid 10 euros per year for being on the network?

It seems to me a good measure to prevent Facebook from being flooded with advertising, algorithms for filtering tastes and preferences and superfluous viral content . An interesting debate opens up: would you be willing to pay to be in a social network? I would do it personally.

Luke Wigman

Luke is passionate about fostering student involvement and connection. He studied psychology for his major and likes learning about the past. Luke aims to specialize in artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. .