the future is coming

Facebook to Destroy Gmail in 3 … 2 ... 1

Remember this moment, people. You might one day have to explain to your children (by then they will be called Zuckerbabies™) how there was once a thing called Gmail, and the world loved it so much that when it wasn’t working, they would tweet out into the void like a widow ululating in sorrow. “Gee mail?” those ingrates will ask, before plugging their FacePod into their bio-port and turning into a hologram. TechCrunch’s Jason Kincaid is reporting that Facebook will launch its secret Project Titan, referred to in-house as its “Gmail killer,” during a special event Monday, along with @facebook.com e-mail addresses for the social network’s users. With a full-scale webmail client, Facebook, which, as Henry Blodget points out is already the “start page” for young Internet users, could be the new home for defectors from Yahoo, AOL, and Hotmail who have otherwise gone to Gmail, cutting into those sites’ page views — and therefore advertising revenue. Project Titan (subtle!) would likely merge Facebook’s photo and events storage more seamlessly into the e-mail interface. This explains the urgency of Google’s fight with Facebook over importing e-mail contacts.

It’s hard to imagine that a socially geared Facebook platform could replace the more work-oriented utility of Gmail and its add-ons, like Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Google Reader. But it was also hard to imagine the day that a picture of what you cooked for dinner would be considered worthy of disseminating to everyone you know. Facebook might be able to prioritize e-mails based on who your friends are, but is that a filter that users would really want over their entire in-box?

Facebook’s Gmail Killer, Project Titan, Is Coming on Monday [TechCrunch]
Facebook Is Launching Email on Monday [Business Insider]

Facebook to Destroy Gmail in 3 … 2 ... 1