Hi Chris, Thanks for your comment. I think that "owning the problem definition" as Steve calls it above is pretty important. I don't think you even stop doing that from a product marketing perspective. The great part for startups about having a dialogue about the market problem, is that they can start talking about that well ahead of having a announceable solution for the problem. Once the solution is released however, I don't think you stop talking about the problem - you can now have the discussion and take it all the way through from problem to solution. Electrical '01 - you're making me feel old! I'm Systems Design Engineering class of 93. I was just in Waterloo a few weeks back - that campus has changed!! April

Hi Jim, Right, and not only can you get some exposure to your market without breaking your budget, you can have conversations about things that don't clear the traditional hurdle of "newsworthy-ness". Having a meaningful discussion about the pain points in a market and the need for a new approach are great topics for social media discussions (and stuff your PR team could never have pitched to the newspaper). Thanks for the comment! April

Hi Doug, Thanks for the comment. What's Fliptop? Don't tell me, I'm just kidding, ;-) But do let us know when the blog launches! April

Hi Jim, It's clear that smart phones are becoming more of a mobile compute platform than simply a phone and so mobile search, apps and ultimately advertising are important for Google's future in the same way netbooks are. The smart phone is a platform that they cannot ignore. As for the exclusive deal that AT&T currently has with the iPhone, I don't believe that will last forever (the chatter now is that it will end in 2010 but it's anyone's guess right now). Regardless, the iPhone is the threat because of the tight integration of the platform with Apple's browser and the control that Apple has over iPhone apps. They clearly compete and if you believe that the smart phone will be the primary computing device of the future, it makes sense that Google make a major play to influence what those devices look like in the future. Thanks for the comment. April

Hi Carl, Thanks for the comment. You are right that Apple is already known as a hardware brand so the move into phones was easier for them. Google has the apps but you don't think of them as "mobile" and you're exactly right that people will think Google=search first and foremost. It will be interesting to watch. I like "Android" but my experience is that building a brand from scratch is much more difficult than working with an existing brand. Without a concerted effort, the Android brand will wither - and is a multi-company alliance going to invest in branding? I think Google is the brand that people know and for better or worse, I have a feeling we will see less and less of Android and more and more "Google phones". April

Hi Jenny, Thanks for the comment. I think it is confusing right now but I think it is going to get much clearer as we move along. I think that there will start to be a clear preference among handset providers for a couple of the 3 options I outlined above and it will become clearer what you get when you buy an Android phone. Until then, I agree, it's pretty confusing. April

Hi Randy, Thanks for the comment and I totally agree that Google and Android are just getting started. The iPhone has incredible momentum in the market. Catching up to that is going to be a long process. Thanks again. April

Hi David, Thanks for the comment. You're right that people will judge a brand based on their local outlet. I love the AGO, I just don't believe them when they say "members matter". The fact that we were members didn't stop them from worrying that we might be a threat to the artwork. April

Hey Peter - thanks for the comment. April

I think Jimmy sits on the board of the Foundation... I'm sure there's been discussion over the years about accepting advertising. I think it's great that they don't go that way. The content afterall is produced by volunteers. It would be difficult to generate revenue in a traditional for-profit manner while at the same time asking folks to give their time and expertise freely without compensation. You would also introduce the whole issue of bias which is just a big can of worms. I for one am glad they've never accepted ads. Thanks for the comment. April

Hi Dave, Here's what I found on their site with respect to Canada: Because of the Wikimedia Foundation's 501(c)3 status in the United States, Canada's tax code will generally permit deductibility of donations to the WMF from the donor's US taxable income only. A useful reference may be Article XXI, Paragraph 6 of the US-Canada tax treaty. Please contact a tax professional for the details of deducting such a donation. See here for more deets: http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Deductibility_of_donations Thanks April

LOL! Thanks! Honestly I think I won because I asked people to vote. I'm in marketing - I never forget the call to action.... :) April

Thanks Christine - Trust me, the face to face version of me is way less goofy :) April

Wow, thanks! It was too bad I didn't get to see everyone. I was actually disconnected after Ethan's preso. And I want to see those pics!! April

Thanks Peter - and I'm really enjoying your blog! April

Thanks Jason :) April

Hi Donna, Thanks so much for posting this and making me sound good! It was great chatting with you at ProductCamp! April

Hey Cassie - thanks so much for your comment! April

Hi Trevor - thanks for the comment! There's a reason I didn't include the logo with the gal on it. For folks that don't know about the Dodgeball history of the founders, the graphic is um, confusing... The web app is awful but I quite like the iPhone app and I don't get updates from anyone - I just check when I feel like it. I agree with you on the last point. I'd certainly be motivated to check in a lot more if there were real rewards for doing so (if you're listening Starbucks I'm the mayor around here and I like Via). April

Hi Andreas, Thanks for your comment. You've hit the nail on the head when you say that advertising is becoming more irrelevant and what other people have to say is very important. I'm interested in examples of products where there are things built-in that are designed to get people talking or to facilitate conversations. Thanks again, April

Hi Stephanie - thanks so much for the comment and the great example! April

Hi Tim, Thanks for your comment and I couldn't agree with you more that some thought has to be put into how customer's can feel more ownership of products. As B2B product folks, we're good at things like advisory councils but making that scale is tricky. I'm also interested in the characteristics of the product itself that make it "social". For example in the Rypple case, there are network effects in using the product that naturally drive folks expand out the user base, increasing the chances they'll be talking about it. April

Hey thanks so much for the link! April

Aw great, I just spit coffee all over my lovely laptop laughing at that one! Typo fixed and I refuse to discuss Marge Simpson's playboy pics...... Thanks, April

Hi Bob - thanks for the comment and for using the word "mishegas" which I haven't heard since I lived in New York ;-) April