I’m freecycling a bunch of stuff I no longer need, and tonight’s disposal launched a discussion with a very nice chap with whom I hope to meet up again; without getting too specific he works for a large technology company with a local presence, and he directed my attention to Microsoft OneApp – “The One App” – which seeks… well, permit me to self-describe it:

Microsoft OneApp is a new software application that enables feature phones—commonly found in emerging markets—to access mobile apps like Facebook, Twitter, Windows Live Messenger, and other popular apps and games. Now, people around the world who own feature phones will be able to do more and enjoy a better mobile experience with their existing phones. Microsoft OneApp will be offered initially through partners in emerging markets worldwide.

It’s a neat idea: people in (say) Uganda can only get access to really shite phones, and thus what they need is Microsoft to intermediate between the Ugandan people and (say) Facebook, so that the Ugandan people can access Facebook from their really shite phones.

He asked my opinion on it.

I thought for a moment, and said “it won’t work, because of diversity.”

He asked: “because of the diversity of people (accessing Facebook)?”

I answered: “no, but because of the fact of diversity.”

We discussed this for an extended period, but here’s the summary: if the Dutch can have have Hyves rather than Facebook — but nobody in the anglophone-sphere gives a damn about it — then in Uganda the locals will (if anything) be entranced by some localised Facebook-knockoff with better local awareness, rather than Facebook itself.

But the (first world) developers will present Facebook, work and connect to Facebook, because it’s what they would know and want.

Thus: any service which seeks to skin-up the real, “first-world” Facebook product in pursuit of presenting it to they who have no running water and only GPRS – well, they’re providing the wrong product.

To misquote: the net interprets intermediation as damage and routes around it.

Disintermediation happens, and in this case an entire business model is at risk.

Sorry, guys. Fascinating conversation, though. 🙂