Snap: Rewriting 'Art of War' for social networking -- by not documenting anything

Social networks may be the most valuable and durable types of businesses powered by “network effects,” the phenomenon of products or services becoming more powerful the more people use them. This is one reason the imminent IPO of social/mobile app Snap, which thrives on network effects, is being so closely watched. Another is that Snap represents the first credible threat to Facebook.