Why is no one making a new version of old Facebook?

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Nostalgia for “old Facebook” raises the question of why no simple, chronological, friend‑centric social network has displaced today’s ad‑driven, algorithmic platforms. Commenters argue that timing and network effects make rebooting that model nearly impossible, while user behavior has shifted toward private group chats, messaging apps, and niche communities instead of a single public feed. Multiple attempts at clones and federated alternatives exist, but they struggle with critical mass, moderation burdens, and the same incentives that eventually push platforms toward surveillance, engagement hacking, and enshittification.

Old Facebook’s Role and What Changed

  • Early Facebook centralized college social life: events, casual updates, lightweight photo sharing, “stalker-mode” news feed.
  • Many report personal feeds now dominated by ads, injected “recommended” content, and low‑quality or sexualized posts; friends rarely post.
  • In some regions (esp. Europe, small towns) Facebook still dominates for events, local businesses, classifieds, and marketplace.

Network Effects, Timing, and Market Dynamics

  • Strong consensus that network effects and two‑sided markets make a “new Facebook” hard to launch.
  • Old Facebook’s success is seen as a unique moment: early social web, college exclusivity, pre‑parent era, and rising economy.
  • Examples like Google+ show that even technically better clones can fail without the right timing and seeding strategy.

Shift to Messaging, Group Chats, and Niche Platforms

  • Many argue “old Facebook” has effectively moved into group chats (SMS, WhatsApp, Discord, Signal, etc.).
  • Group chats and Discord servers provide scoped audiences, more natural social feedback, and avoid global feeds.
  • People now use a mix: Instagram for photos, LinkedIn for “old Facebook but professional,” TikTok/YouTube for entertainment, Meetup and others for events.

Privacy, Social Risk, and User Behavior

  • Some say users (especially younger ones) are more cautious: prefer private groups, alts, and minimal public posting.
  • Others claim mainstream users still don’t care much about privacy.
  • There’s less appetite to broadcast life updates to an entire social graph; more comfort with small, overlapping circles.

Business Models and “Enshittification”

  • Many attribute Facebook’s evolution to monetization: maximizing engagement and ad revenue via algorithmic feeds.
  • “Old Facebook” would likely be less profitable, so incumbents won’t revert; a newcomer would struggle to fund infrastructure without similar tactics.

Attempts, Alternatives, and Obstacles

  • Numerous clones and federated systems exist (VK, Friendica, Smithereen, Elgg, Mastodon/ActivityPub tools, custom projects).
  • They generally fail to reach critical mass; users rarely migrate friends over.
  • Moderation burden, spam/abuse, legal risks (e.g., Section 230 debates, CP concerns) and eroded trust in social media are cited as major barriers.