Competition

It is said very often, "Competition drives people". But I really don't know if that's the truth for everyone. There are tons of people who despise competition. Some people are afraid competition. Competition separates the strong from the weak. Will you drive to be the best?

One prime example of a company scared of competition is Facebook. Facebook has incorporated many features from Google+ and Twitter. This includes the circles (smart lists), video chat, real-time ticker, and subscribers. Facebook hasn't implemented anything to drive past the rest of them in a while. While the new timeline feature may do that, only the future will tell.

Twitter doesn't to be scared of any competition. They seem to be very confident in their product. They have implemented updates to make their service easier to use than ever. They have even taken advantage of Facebook and have integrated the ability to publish tweets to Facebook.

Then, you have Google. Trying to into the people business as an advertising/search company. They have done things never been done by the competitors, group video chat (Or video chat in general), location based statuses, and the integration of their other products. This being said, they have also duplicated features from Facebook, like the +1 button. It's the "like" button for the entire web. 

Also, Google is trying to take everything over. They have their own beer now.

Overall, competition is great for the user. Just think about all the services that are free. People may be spoiled with all these services and products, expecting way too much. But this is a subject for another time.