[Note: I haven't blockquoted anything from this article because I believe that you should just read the whole piece..]

Derek Powazek wonders whether social networks (as we understand them currently) even have the ability to make money. I agree that truly sustainable sites will have to monetize almost immediately out of the gate. This, however, is merely my opinion as a consumer.

I'm just dead tired of investing my time into something that will very likely be "sunset", but not before all value has been driven away. I want to pay for communities—that provide some measure of value to me—to keep them alive and thriving.