Utterz: like Twitter but with audio/video

I’m in serious social networking fatigue. Or maybe that’s the overnight fatigue kicking in cause Milan woke up three times.

Here’s another Twitter competitor: Utterz.

Except it’s like Twitter with TwitterGram with a decent UI.

Here’s the condundrum: if a service has better features than Twitter but your friends aren’t on it, is it any good?

No.

Translation: I’m not trying out new social networks anymore until at least 100 people ask me to join.

Sorry to be so rude, but the bar has gone up. The window has closed. Yada yada yada.

Oh, I’m sneaking out of the house to go to TechCrunch 40 for a few hours. Don’t tell Maryam! 🙂

48 thoughts on “Utterz: like Twitter but with audio/video

  1. “Utterz”, isn’t that what cows have? 🙂
    Question Robert…How does the world progress if the new isn’t adopted/tried until there is already a crowd?
    I do agree with you though, there are so many social things out there that it’s almost impossible to keep up, the fatigue is real.

    Like

  2. “Utterz”, isn’t that what cows have? 🙂
    Question Robert…How does the world progress if the new isn’t adopted/tried until there is already a crowd?
    I do agree with you though, there are so many social things out there that it’s almost impossible to keep up, the fatigue is real.

    Like

  3. >> Here’s the condundrum: if a service has better features than Twitter but your friends aren’t on it, is it any good?

    Sure, it can be good. Only one of my friends uses Twitter (an example of teenagers thinking it’s lame, perhaps?) but I use it in conjunction with facebook, MySpace, and my personal blog. Even though almost none of my friends have an account, they can still view my tweets and use the information accordingly. There are a lot of uses for a service like Twitter, even if none of your friends are on it.

    Like

  4. >> Here’s the condundrum: if a service has better features than Twitter but your friends aren’t on it, is it any good?

    Sure, it can be good. Only one of my friends uses Twitter (an example of teenagers thinking it’s lame, perhaps?) but I use it in conjunction with facebook, MySpace, and my personal blog. Even though almost none of my friends have an account, they can still view my tweets and use the information accordingly. There are a lot of uses for a service like Twitter, even if none of your friends are on it.

    Like

  5. Thank you. Here’s a syndrome we can recognize from Hollywood studio and TV execs. There’s a hit in some new genre (Heroes, Sci-Fi, Western, Sit-com, Detective). It scratches an itch. Next year 50 copycats. 49 failures. Time for really smart folks to discover some new itches that we don’t even know we have.

    Like

  6. Thank you. Here’s a syndrome we can recognize from Hollywood studio and TV execs. There’s a hit in some new genre (Heroes, Sci-Fi, Western, Sit-com, Detective). It scratches an itch. Next year 50 copycats. 49 failures. Time for really smart folks to discover some new itches that we don’t even know we have.

    Like

  7. I agree with you about the social networking fatigue. Because I am in a tech support, creative and marketing business I feel it’s my business to at least check out and register for new services and at least “stake my claim” but all practical purposes I have settled on Twitter for Micro-blogging (Although I have a Jaiku account to aggregate other things), Facebook for general social networking and Flickr for my photo sharing. On top of that I actually spend more time blogging and posting to blogs like this one. BTW, what’s your twitter name?

    Like

  8. I agree with you about the social networking fatigue. Because I am in a tech support, creative and marketing business I feel it’s my business to at least check out and register for new services and at least “stake my claim” but all practical purposes I have settled on Twitter for Micro-blogging (Although I have a Jaiku account to aggregate other things), Facebook for general social networking and Flickr for my photo sharing. On top of that I actually spend more time blogging and posting to blogs like this one. BTW, what’s your twitter name?

    Like

  9. I think the idea with Utterz is less about joining yet another social network but acquiring a tool to put your voice posts and mobile comments on the web. There are little widgets and gadgets for your website….that sort of thing. But I can see how it would be hard to migrate your entire social network if they’ve already adopted one platform.

    Like

  10. I think the idea with Utterz is less about joining yet another social network but acquiring a tool to put your voice posts and mobile comments on the web. There are little widgets and gadgets for your website….that sort of thing. But I can see how it would be hard to migrate your entire social network if they’ve already adopted one platform.

    Like

  11. Udders? Seriously – the only reason this crap happens and we get ridiculous names is because of the MILLIONS of domain names being held by squatters with no intention of using them. It’s the equivalent of having thousands of miles of beach-front property that’s filled with billboards that no one can buy to put houses on without spending an arm and a leg.

    I was trying to come up with a name for a couple of my own ideas and you simply cannot find good domain names anymore. If legitimate users of the system can’t use it, the system is broken.

    Like

  12. Udders? Seriously – the only reason this crap happens and we get ridiculous names is because of the MILLIONS of domain names being held by squatters with no intention of using them. It’s the equivalent of having thousands of miles of beach-front property that’s filled with billboards that no one can buy to put houses on without spending an arm and a leg.

    I was trying to come up with a name for a couple of my own ideas and you simply cannot find good domain names anymore. If legitimate users of the system can’t use it, the system is broken.

    Like

  13. Interesting… pile the media on! Can’t say I’d want to join though. The first few things I saw were people posting embarrassing pictures and a lady who posted a risqué video. Too “myspacey”

    Like

  14. Interesting… pile the media on! Can’t say I’d want to join though. The first few things I saw were people posting embarrassing pictures and a lady who posted a risqué video. Too “myspacey”

    Like

  15. Hey Rob,

    You tried Jaiku long ago, why you didn’t like it?

    Besides the “all-my-friends-are-in-twitter” reason, I find Jaiku more polished and friendlier than twitter.

    In todays world, every web app must be functional AND beautiful at the same time.

    Like

  16. Hey Rob,

    You tried Jaiku long ago, why you didn’t like it?

    Besides the “all-my-friends-are-in-twitter” reason, I find Jaiku more polished and friendlier than twitter.

    In todays world, every web app must be functional AND beautiful at the same time.

    Like

  17. Milanesse: I didn’t take to Jaiku because Facebook does a better job of aggregating all my stuff and because Pownce came along with a much better UI. Also, with Jaiku I can’t see who is following me, where with all the others that I’m on I can.

    Like

  18. Milanesse: I didn’t take to Jaiku because Facebook does a better job of aggregating all my stuff and because Pownce came along with a much better UI. Also, with Jaiku I can’t see who is following me, where with all the others that I’m on I can.

    Like

  19. Hi Robert. Actually social network fatique isn’t something that only happens to you. I assume you are one of the heiviest users of all these different possibilities, but I hear a lot of people discussig it right now. Services go live all the time, but not many of them are really thought through very well. Mostly they are trying to jump on the same bandwagon as the real popular services. I think we might just see a scattering of users across the services making them less valueable in the end. The service that starts thinking about what I get out of the network as a user, instead of looking at the value of the network itself, will be the clear winner in the end.

    Like

  20. Hi Robert. Actually social network fatique isn’t something that only happens to you. I assume you are one of the heiviest users of all these different possibilities, but I hear a lot of people discussig it right now. Services go live all the time, but not many of them are really thought through very well. Mostly they are trying to jump on the same bandwagon as the real popular services. I think we might just see a scattering of users across the services making them less valueable in the end. The service that starts thinking about what I get out of the network as a user, instead of looking at the value of the network itself, will be the clear winner in the end.

    Like

  21. I’m more likely to fall back on a prior position of yours, actually, Scobe, where you thanked potential media competitors for abandoning certain services and platforms giving you a greater crack at those eyes and ears.

    Why try it unless your friends are there? Because your friends AREN’T there. I’m trying Utterz but this time it’s about connecting to new people…people outside The Herd. If current friends read/see/hear me there…all good. It’s value will show, though, in how many new people I can expose myself to.

    Anyone interested in more viewers around here? 😛

    Hope all is well…remember to sleep, daddy!

    Like

  22. I’m more likely to fall back on a prior position of yours, actually, Scobe, where you thanked potential media competitors for abandoning certain services and platforms giving you a greater crack at those eyes and ears.

    Why try it unless your friends are there? Because your friends AREN’T there. I’m trying Utterz but this time it’s about connecting to new people…people outside The Herd. If current friends read/see/hear me there…all good. It’s value will show, though, in how many new people I can expose myself to.

    Anyone interested in more viewers around here? 😛

    Hope all is well…remember to sleep, daddy!

    Like

  23. I have to disagree with comment #5. Yes, there were lots of Survivor copies, but many other shows still followed the same concept and did really well (like The Apprentice). So You Think You Can Dance is a direct copy of American Idol, yet it’s actually a far better show and makes American Idol feel boring by comparison. Twitter is only good because it’s popular and because it was the first to gain traction; not because it’s well executed.

    Like

  24. I have to disagree with comment #5. Yes, there were lots of Survivor copies, but many other shows still followed the same concept and did really well (like The Apprentice). So You Think You Can Dance is a direct copy of American Idol, yet it’s actually a far better show and makes American Idol feel boring by comparison. Twitter is only good because it’s popular and because it was the first to gain traction; not because it’s well executed.

    Like

  25. I spoke with Michael Bayer and and Randy Cork, both executives at the company, for the podcast last week (see the website link). I am impressed and am going to keep an eye on the company for a couple of reason:
    1) they are going to have threaded audio commenting for podcasts.
    2) easy (and free and non ad-supported) mobile blogging/vlogging/podcasting
    3) they’re looking to be a supplement to, not a replacement for, your current social networks. it just makes sense.

    Like

  26. I spoke with Michael Bayer and and Randy Cork, both executives at the company, for the podcast last week (see the website link). I am impressed and am going to keep an eye on the company for a couple of reason:
    1) they are going to have threaded audio commenting for podcasts.
    2) easy (and free and non ad-supported) mobile blogging/vlogging/podcasting
    3) they’re looking to be a supplement to, not a replacement for, your current social networks. it just makes sense.

    Like

  27. I’ve long since abandoned MySpace and Friendster (yes, i was an active member once upon a time) and have to say, social networks stopped fulfilling my needs a while ago, facebook still hangs on.
    i found utterz to be meaningful in a few ways:
    – i don’t use it as a social network…their community manager ‘sim’ is my only “friend”
    – it provides a unique ability to my blogger account being able to blog into my posts rather than a widget with almost none of their branding.
    – 3 people have already told me they found my blog by looking through utterz. Three people! That might not seem like a lot, but considering they seem to have only started, i’m encouraged to keep using it.

    Like

  28. I’ve long since abandoned MySpace and Friendster (yes, i was an active member once upon a time) and have to say, social networks stopped fulfilling my needs a while ago, facebook still hangs on.
    i found utterz to be meaningful in a few ways:
    – i don’t use it as a social network…their community manager ‘sim’ is my only “friend”
    – it provides a unique ability to my blogger account being able to blog into my posts rather than a widget with almost none of their branding.
    – 3 people have already told me they found my blog by looking through utterz. Three people! That might not seem like a lot, but considering they seem to have only started, i’m encouraged to keep using it.

    Like

  29. I have been playing with utterz this last week and its fairly cool. Threaded voice posts from my cell, they added features based on requests from myself and Eric Rice this week.

    I can post and listen to other posts from the road. Oh well. I like it. so instead of having a Scoble effect it will just grow organically.

    Like

  30. I have been playing with utterz this last week and its fairly cool. Threaded voice posts from my cell, they added features based on requests from myself and Eric Rice this week.

    I can post and listen to other posts from the road. Oh well. I like it. so instead of having a Scoble effect it will just grow organically.

    Like

Comments are closed.