Network Effects Explained
Value increases as more people use it. Phones connect more people. Social networks attract friends. Marketplaces bring buyers and sellers together.
What was corrected
The article stated a Netscape IPO opening at $28, implied Metcalfe's arithmetic predicts a single-winner market, presented the FTC's procedural allegation as a factual finding, treated Dunbar's 150 as a hard limit, and reported precise 2-3x, fewer-than-1-in-20, and 5%/3% figures as established measured results.
Corrected the IPO facts, added the n log n critique of Metcalfe's Law, distinguished allegation from finding for the FTC case, qualified Dunbar's number, and reframed the platform statistics as study estimates or practitioner judgments rather than exact universal rules.
Why this is better
The underlying sources are real but were stated more precisely or deterministically than they support. Corrections scope the claims to the primary sources (Halaburda et al. 2018; Chen; Farronato and Fradkin 2022; the FTC complaint's litigation history) rather than adding new sources.
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