Huge, advertising-based, general-purpose social networks aren’t the high-growth cash cows they once were, as Facebook’s recent “growth” numbers would suggest. Many consumers, it turns out, would rather spend their time watching short-form videos than sharing memes and hitting “like” buttons. And new restrictions on user tracking have made it harder for mass-market social networks to target ads.The founders of a new social network called Niche believe the next generation of social networks might cater to online communities formed around more specific interests, such as hobbies or creator businesses.[Photo: courtesy of Niche]“I think the first run of social networks was to connect everyone en masse—it’s your high school friends, your family; it’s a very large swath of connection and [with] very little in common,” says Niche CEO Christopher Gulczynski, one of its cofounders, who is credited with inventing Tinder’s “swipe” feature when he worked at the dating app company. “But I think the trend in social networking right now is to get smaller, to get more intimate around that relational status of everyone in the group.”So, on the Niche app, which became available in the App Store Tuesday, you would find groups formed around rock climbing or around people who enjoy…
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These Facebook and Tinder vets are building a Web3 social network called Niche
