Netropolitan: Social Network of the 1%?
Country clubs are one of those “finer things” in life that that one hears about. Only those who can afford them or have a friend who belongs to one will really know what they’re like. Membership can carry with it steep initiation fees and a pricey annual fee to boot. They grant members access to facilities that they might not otherwise have: golf courses, tennis courts, swimming pools, fine dining, etc. Arguably more important, however, is the impact they have on the company one keeps. In a country club, you’re surrounded only by that upper echelon of successful people who can afford and appreciate these “finer things.”
How, then, does that translate into the digital realm? Netropolitan is a new social network which aims to become the country club of social networks. Membership requires a $6000 initiation fee, plus and annual $3000 usage fee. The site boasts no adds, employs site monitors, and (almost) guarantees privacy. Who exactly is this for?
Lets take recently wealthy man “Lots O’Cash.” Lots has a Facebook account, but finds his “friends” post about their fantasy football teams too much, or take too many pictures of their latest “thrifting” trip. He decides that he only wants to hear about the exciting lives of his friends who own yachts and seasonal homes, so he joins up with Netropolitan. Now, Lots can post with his friends about their latest cruise without ridicule from the non-wealthy public.
This example isn’t exactly fair by any means. We assume Lots considers himself “too good for” or “above” his poorer friends, which is certainly not an automatic implication of having money. Still, we have to wonder if this new social network is actually worth it to anyone, and if so, what that demographic is and why they would use it.
Let’s assume that the reason for joining Netropolitan is to connect with people of the same socioeconomic status. With as pervasive a network as Facebook has, why wouldn’t my upper class friends already be on it? Furthermore, if I have anything worthwhile in common with such people other than the size of my paycheck, couldn’t I be connecting with these people on Facebook anyway? If I have two wealthy friends with whom I share a strong link (and thus a Facebook or Netropolitan link), then Facebook might already suggest their friendship just as Netropolitan would. The only difference is that on Netropolitan, my association with both parties would tell them that the other is of the same class. This, then, is the only added use of the new social network, making our earlier assumption a likely case.
While on Facebook, you might be one of the nodes on a bridge between two socioeconomic classes, Netropolitan eliminates the bridge entirely, preventing the two from connecting regardless of the strength of your ties to either one. Unlike the tangible institution of a country club, Netropolitan ONLY promotes social exclusivity. In a metaphorical, and graph theory, sense it makes gaps in class unbridgeable. The question is then if keeping that gap is worth dropping $9000 in one go to access a website which doesn’t do much new. It will be interesting to see how popular the site becomes, although as of yet usage data has been kept secret.
Read up on it here: http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/16/tech/social-media/netropolitan-social-media/
Or visit the website here: http://netropolitan.info/