Myspace Tom is on Facebook. Users finding the same picture from 2004 where he is in front of a whiteboard asked why he is still using that as his online representation. Well duh… but in case “well duh” isn’t good enough for you, he explains on Facebook as follows:
I suppose I will turn this into a FAQ of sorts. FAQ #1: Many have asked why I’ve used the same picture for 8 years. The answer is simple: because you’ll recognize it. Lots of people have subscribed to me in the last 10 hours since posting. Why? Because they saw my photo. Who knows “Tom Anderson”? My name is pretty generic. Most people don’t even know what I look like; the MySpace photo is recognizable. Here’s a new photo, taken a few weeks ago.
And why is he even ON Facebook? Isn’t it Myspace’s mortal enemy? Tom explains:
People seem very confused why I’m on Facebook. I’ve had a profile since 2005 and a “fan page” since 2009. FB just created a feature where you can “subscribe” to profiles. They asked me if I wanted to convert my “page” into a simpler profile. Complicated? I suppose. Why am I not on MySpace? Because, I left the company in early 2009, and like most of you, I don’t like using it anymore.. not a fan of what the new folks have done with MySpace.
But does he view Facebook as a rival that he only joined begrudgingly? Anderson says, no way. He loves it.
FAQ #2: People often ask me what I think of Facebook? Put simply, I love it. Facebook has accomplished what I wanted to accomplish when I started MySpace–that “everyone” would be online, and “everything” online would get more fun & useful because its social. To me, Facebook just keeps getting better & better. Now when they remove that 500 character limit on posting (rumored this week), I’ll be able to say much, much more.