I remember way back when a lot of stuff was forums.
I think the communities are the most important part of these networks, and even if they all have feature parity, it's 100% fine for them to still exist independently.
I think Facebook and LinkedIn are a good example. You could basically do everything you do on LinkedIn on FB, but the communities are different so they stay different. Of course, LinkedIn accentuates different features, but both are mainly "Walls" with some messaging features and community building.
Though, I think you're very right in that Twitter is its own beast. Namely for the semi-public nature of it all.
I think the communities are the most important part of these networks, and even if they all have feature parity, it's 100% fine for them to still exist independently.
I think Facebook and LinkedIn are a good example. You could basically do everything you do on LinkedIn on FB, but the communities are different so they stay different. Of course, LinkedIn accentuates different features, but both are mainly "Walls" with some messaging features and community building.
Though, I think you're very right in that Twitter is its own beast. Namely for the semi-public nature of it all.