I would say that the counterthinking was to insist on something that a lot of people (including some big players) were doing, without any real success.
But I admit there is some wishfull thinking there, as I am in this position. My startup is a private social network, a field with a lot of high profile players (Path and some YC companies), and still no one nailed it.
("Better" is obviously a form of "different", but I don't think that's the implication of your comment.)