I've received a dozen emails in the last day and a half from journalists looking for quotes about Ello. I didn't reply to any of them. I have no interest in being the anti-Ello poster boy, for one main reason:
I think Ello's pretty neat, and I want them to succeed.
Like I said in my post, more experimentation with online communities is a very good thing. We'll only break away from the dominant players by trying new crazy shit, and I think it should be applauded. (And, yes, I even like the design.)
But I think taking VC was a bad idea that works against their ethos, and will inevitably lead to a much larger Series A by year's end.
I think the intentions of the team are pure, and they genuinely believe in what they're building. But I'm not sure intentions matter unless they can wean themselves off outside funding.
I really, really hope their revenue plan works out, and quickly.
