social

Apple is good at many things, but so far, it has not excelled at "social" Web services. For example, Ping, the music-focused service it launched in 2010, is seen as one of its rare failures.

But now Apple has a real chance to do something "social" properly, by turning its huge and growing base of iOS users into a useful social platform, while maintaining appropriate privacy and security.

There’s no set formula for startup success. Some companies focus on design, mastering industry research or one-upping competitors to make it to the top. In the case of Internet startup Klout, though, the focus is on users.

From day one, Klout Founder and CEO Joe Fernandez’s goal has been to “help people understand their influence and to [help them] leverage that influence.”