Facebook has eaten Instagram. What does it mean?

It’s probably helpful to think about fishing here.

Instagram is a small, nippy data-fishing fleet whose nets are bulging.

Facebook is a data-trawler, with huge factory ships cruising the oceans, scooping up data by the kiloton.

Obviously, they now have the capacity to scoop up rival fleets as well.

Quota … unquota
One day, of course, the data oceans will run dry, and the ships will just be floating rust-buckets, spending most of their time in port, and subject to data quotas (because by then, naturally, the state will regulate everything data-ish.

And the real business will then take centre stage: data processing, data storage and data monitoring.

So … if you want to know the future of data – it’s a combination of Grimsby and GCHQ.

I’d get off the grid now if I were you.