I don’t agree that just because people will use a free thing that means it has a lot of value. Note I didn’t say that FB has no value, just that it might not be as valuable as one might think.
Considering most of their value is their messenger platform I don’t think FB is really worth much at all beyond their social graph.
That's a typo on my part — it doesn't change the veracity of the argument.
> I don’t agree that just because people will use a free thing that means it has a lot of value. Note I didn’t say that FB has no value, just that it might not be as valuable as one might think.
Sure, but how do you measure the "true" value? If you can answer that question, you will probably become a billionaire.
> Considering most of their value is their messenger platform I don’t think FB is really worth much at all beyond their social graph.
What are you basing this on? You may only find the messenger platform to be valuable, but how do you know how others perceive the FB platform/product?
If that argument sounded absurd to you, it's probably because it is. The services are valuable because people ultimately do use them — a lot of them, even. They pay for them indirectly by agreeing to look at ads.
There are loads of services we do not directly pay for, like the fire department and the public library — and yet they are immensely valuable.