Twitter co-founder Biz Stone appeared on The Colbert Report last night. In case you haven’t seen it already, the video is embedded above. Stone describes Twitter as “The messaging system that we didn’t know we needed until we had it.” To which Colbert responds: “That sounds like the answer to a problem we didn’t have until I invented the answer.”
Stone plays it cool and sticks to his guns. He waxes poetic about the potential of Twitter, especially across four billion mobile phones, and hints that the company will start experimenting with different ways to make money this year. (If it doesn’t get bought first, that is—despite Stone’s talk about staying “independent”).
Colbert was not in top form, I have to say. He threw a bunch of softballs at Stone, and failed to really put him on the spot. The Daily Show’s take on Twitter was much funnier:
“Stone describes Twitter as “The messaging system that we didn’t know we needed until we had it.””
Stolen from the mouth of Bill Gates.
Stolen from the mouth of every entrepreneur in history
video not avalabel in Canada
Oh, well …
TheComedyNetwork.ca SUCKS!! It has the worst UI ever.
I hope Canada and the US merge so that we get access to some cool websites…. Srsly.
Video streams to Canada will be resumed once the Canadian supreme court overrules ALL of the Quebec law 101 limiting free speech in the English language, public monies that go to fund programs,
AND you declare independence from Great Britain(no more crown corporations).
That’s what you get for losing.
Chris, I concur. Downloading movies in Canada is legal = not cool.
ps. God save the Queen
I’m glad that was an assignment and not a test for true!
Biz might be a nice guy, I know zero about him. But to me he seemed like a bit of a dick on Colbert.
I agree… Biz’s head seems to be expanding. Not that he shouldn’t be proud of his accomplishments… but the first word out of dudes mouth was “powerful”… I think Colbert did a decent job in explaining to Biz that human interaction will always trump 140 characters, and it was interesting to watch Biz’s obvious uncomfort with communications when his technology was taken away… I think it says a lot about the sacrifices we may be losing sight of as we succumb to something evolving a lot faster than we are. Wow I feel old for saying that.
I think in the future, maybe 200 years from now, people will be fascinated by conversations like this. From a historical perspective, I think it’s interesting that we’re trying collectively to figure out how we feel about this stuff, about how it fits into our lives and where its necessary. Someday, it’ll have its place and just be what it is. So, it’ll be interesting so see people confused by it.
My nerd moment is done. Technology is wild.
Looked like he was having fun, to me.
It’s a shame that he came off like that. Honestly, Biz is a great guy and has done some great things for Twitter since the very beginning. I think he was pulling that to combat any “hardball” Colbert may play on the show.
It might have come off very wrong and big headed but I feel that he was trying to be serious, take the “tough questions” and exude confidence in the service.
It’s a shame he came off as a dick but that’s not Biz.
I agree with Adam! Biz is a really neat guy. He’s intelligent and great to talk with.
Doug/Dante I suggest you get to know him beyond the video. Have you twittered with him at least? Made any move to actually know him beyond an image on a screen? If not I think you are kinda well the person you are claiming him to be.
He did preface his comment with “Biz might be a nice guy, I know zero about him.”
He was just making an observation. Humans are allowed to that you know, and if you put yourself out there in the public arena, you will be subjected to it.
that’s the only funny thing I’ve heard Colbert say, the self-importance of the Twitter people annoy me but I guess it’s understandable since everyone’s talking about their little toy. I only like Twitter because it’s causing Facebook to lose some of its shine, as I’m sure I’ll only like the next invention to come along that causes Twitter to lose some of its shine.
jack dorsey i see gets no love its all biz and ev lately .
If you read his Tweets, you can see that @Jack has been out of the country for a while. I think he is traveling in Spain so he’s not around for media appearances.
Biz maybe played it cool. But if you want your company to be taken seriously on national TV from a New York City studio, don’t dress like a 15-year-old.
I hate to judge people on what they wear, but its tough to take someone seriously who spends so much effort trying to be cool.
Steve jobs can get away with wearing old tennis shoes because he just doesnt care what people think.
somebody bring Jack back.
http://vator.tv...Twitter-Twitter
yes, there was no arrogance from JD in this video
thank you twitcrunch.com
Yeah, Twitter is on a media blitz to hype the aquisition, TC will have at least four more articles about twitter in the next 24 hours … http://tweetube.com/1m0 …
Twitter should be more than 140 characters, because the creativity he sees comes from people linking to external pages. Which is great, but why is he limiting the ammount of characters when most people are using tweet apps not SMS. I don’t understand how limiting technology to accomodate old technology is the right move. And I am not saying they should have unlimited characters, but at least 160! 240 would be ideal, because I am always seeing myself cut short and having to abbreviate like a tween.
If you want more characters, use Facebook.
I don’t “get” Twitter. I never thought I’d be too old or out of touch to get technology but Twitter makes no sense to me.
From what I can tell it’s just Facebook status messages without the Facebook or like an instant messenger / IRC channel with endless conversations on it.
I’d happy PayPal $20 to the first person who can pop over to my site and explain it to me because honestly, I don’t get it.
Its just an interactive diary bro…
don’t ever use bro again
spam dump
I’m not going to pop over to your site but I’ll gladly take the $20.
Twitter was nearly the 1st person to do this. I’m constantly defending Twitter because Facebook didn’t invent the status update but I find them getting credit for it.
Twitter is a way to share your thoughts, interests, activities and favorite things with a group of people instantly.
Think Blog + Party Line + Micro + Free. Blogs are great but they take commitment and the likelihood of being “found” is very low. When you tweet about how much you love Chicken from KFC, people search for fried chicken for KFC wil find your profile and follow.
It helps people with similar interests to be connected no matter where they are from or how different they are. Twitter’s Open API and vibrant 3rd party developer community makes Twitter more real. Services like TwitPic, BrightKite and Bit.Ly are around to make the experience even better.
Now you’re sharing ideas, photos, links and your location with hundreds and thousands of people and they reply, retweet and collaborate to make big things happen.
Millions of dollars have been raised for charity using Twitter and the power of a retweet and people who were arrested, kidnapped or lost have used Twitter to help them get out of the situation.
I used it to find a job and house in San Francisco when I moved here last year. I used the service when I was lost driving through Atlanta in 2007 and didn’t have a map or GPS and just recently, a Demi Moore reached out to a women over Twitter who was thinking of commiting suicide.
Each Twitter user is writing a blog but the blog is in short bursts of information. Others can follow taht blog but they don’t necessarily have to see the updates and mark them as “read” which is how RSS works. You can comment or “reply” to those tweets and start a conversation or simply decide to tweet about what interests you and that’s it.
It’s an excellent medium for change, sharing ideas and making connections and Twitter beat out all other services over the past couple of years is because its focus on SMS and mobile was pretty much perfect. It allows us geeks to tweet and share our ideas while we’re out and about. Impromptu tweetups happen as people start tweeting from a location and more join in.
The focus on mobile makes Twitter a more vibrant ecosystem so “normal” mainstream users can use it from anywhere with any phone because all you need is texting capabilities. Emerging markets have SMS so they can join in the conversation as well.
Twitter’s future isn’t definite but its here to stay and everyone will try to copy it so expect more posts on TechCrunch about micro-blogging and micro-messaging because it’s not going away.
I agree with Mr. Adam Jackson. The simplest way to relate Twitter to someone who is not a user is to tell them it’s basically a huge stream of Facebook statuses.
Adam you nailed it.
Twitter is important to us who use it not for what it does for us but for what we can do for others!
Twitter has helped people all over the world. It is breaking news and breaking ideas.
There is so much more but ya know if you really want to learn about twitter get on it and see how we are using it!
Danny Brown with 12 for 12,000! Amazing charity work. Twestival for clean water another great example!
That’s just the smallest bit there is so many more and so much more.
You have that right.
What also makes twitter unique is that it is not trying to be a reflection of social interactions, but rather to provide an environment for totally new social interactions.
At Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. I bring my real world friends. At twitter you make new friends.
Bravo Adam. Christopher better pay up!
One other point I’d add is Twitter puts users back in control. I can easily follow and un-follow who I want when I want with a simple click. 2. tweet-on! @robblewis
Twitter has now responded to the recent speculation.
see http://socialdo...itter-responds/
I don’t understand why people always question about the business model of Twitter. Twitter is pretty damn service and it is THE next wave of the search methodologies. Even my favorite website http://www.boilingpage.com that derives contents from Twitter and creates a valuable real-time search engine has a very high potential, I wouldn’t doubt if Twitter will ever make money.
Biz did great! I wouldn’t say Colbert wasn’t in top form rather I think he just has so little knowledge of social networking and its potential that he really didn’t know the right questions to ask. What do you expect from mass market media. Isn’t that why you started techcruch – journalist that actually knew what they were talking about?
Besides, Colbert is still one of the funniest guys out there so as long as he’s giving the tech crowd like biz and others a mass audience reach then he can ask all the softball questions he wants. @robblewis
Colbert took it easy on him that’s for sure. I’ve seen Colbert throw some fastballs and he seemed to only crack jokes instead of putting Biz on the spot.
The mention of Pets.com was awesome.
The strange thing is:
- Twitter was intented for mobile use (hence the 140 char = 160 -20 from texting/SMS)
- Twitter is mainly used from the Internet
Maybe people like short span interests.
- Reading a complete page is out/waste of time.
- Reading a book is history.
I would say that Twitter is more of a replacement for email than it is anything that Facebook offers. Nice, short, and efficient.
Biz seemed arrogant on the show, the same as his Twitter updates and blog updates. There is always a sense of boasting and superiority about him. He speaks in new-age business buzzwords and cliches. I don’t understand why everyone is rooting for someone who has such a big head.
agreed, also find this in their CEO
Yeah, Ev seems like that too, but different. His Nebraska farmboy modesty rings false. These guys are part of the “in” crowd in Silicon valley and it has helped them get the buzz that allowed them to take off. He’s not some lucky farmboy – he has all the right connections. Of the three “founders” (not sure what makes Stone a “founder” other than being friends with Ev), Dorsey seems like the most sincere.
I’d like to agree with one of the comments above, he certainly dressed down to come on the show which looked really badly.
I wonder if he didn’t feel uncomfortable in jeans, tshirt and sneakers in front of Colbert and his suit and tie?
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The interview wasn’t great… Colbert was just trying to rip on Biz the whole time.
Funny you can see the Tweets Colbert was typing during the show at @StephenAtHome.
I thought it was also amusing to read an update from @Biz this morning, complaining about having a middle seat on the plane back to California. Nice to hear that with all of that investment money, the leaders of Twitter ride coach like the rest of us.
Speaking of funny takes on Twitter, NPR had a good one from Brian Unger.
http://www.npr....101619832#email
Apart from his “i feel powerful” comment, I thought Biz stone did great – he didnt get intimidated by Colbert’s pranks and gimmicks and made it a point to throw the message about Twitter out there. I dont think Colbert did a good job here – he could have asked more insightful questions, but it was entertaining to watch nonetheless.
I am sure this comment will get lost in the shuffle, so maybe at some point I will blog about it, but there’s something that Biz Stone said that doesn’t “add up” in my mind.
When asked by Colbert “Why 140 characters?” Biz’s answer was that SMS is limited to 160 characters, and so they chose 140 characters in order to leave room for usernames. However, any @username that you include in a tweet goes against your 140 characters… so, his argument doesn’t make any sense.
So, what’s the real reason, then, for the 140 character limit? Shouldn’t it be 160?
They left 20 characters for future ads.