http://www.automotto.org or http://www.bornrich.org

Blogger is just a blogging platform and don`t work with authors like we do.

Instablogs is also a network of blogs. Yes, “members” can contribute, but it’s still a network of blogs. That they’ve opened up the platform only shows their innovation and, again, shouldn’t disqualify them (unless they want to be disqualified, of course).

Your definition of “bloggers that are invited to join, after establishing a blog” doesn’t fit with the b5 model, WIN, Gawker, PopSugar or ShinyMedia. All either start their own properties or hire writers who’ve never blogged before.

The definition of a blog network should be simple: a network of blogs written by multiple authors sharing resources and focussed on publishing content on those blogs.

Blogs. Authors. Content.

This would qualify just about everyone but 9rules style networks (where the focus has shifted to Notes) and Federated Media (where the focus is the ads).

End of the day, though, it should really be about what users care about, which should be great content, great interaction, great features. And that should be evidenced by traffic growth, blogger satisfaction and overall industry visibility.

But, that’s just my opinion, and I’m admittedly biased ;-)

Instablogs still doesn’t qualify (or else blogger should also be included).

If we don’t narrow criteria to bloggers that are invited to join, after establishing a blog with great content, the distance from social networks is short.

Or else I’d be better categorizing networks in general.

- PopSugar, just raised a second round, great social nework integration, huge audience
- ShinyMedia, totally captured the UK market in tech and fahion, amazing brands.
- Instablogs, decent community, incredibly popular with its userbase
- 9rules, ditto
- b5media, on which I won’t comment, but which deserves to be on any list if for no other reason than that we do 30M+ pages/month for more than 3M uniques

To say that WIN and Gawker are the epitomy of blog networks is to demean the huge work of a half-dozen teams that have been innovative, produced gobs of fantastic content AND have dedicated and loyal audiences.

TG: No worries on the confusion. We were revshare for over a year, so you weren’t off your rocker :)

Does it qualify better than my principle of nuclear aggregation of content?

I also didn’t know all the different kind of blogs you create, thanks for the clarification Jeremy.

I have yet to see a blog network produce original content over time other than:

1. Gawker media
2. Weblogsinc: some of whose blogs are more like magazines.

I have covered Blog networks including how to run them on the Mediavidea blog.

There is one thing I want to correct you regarding Instablogs. Instablogs do offer a social platform in terms of MyBlog which can be used as a normal blog, but one of the major features of MyBlog is that you can import your existing feeds there and can get a bit of exposure of your current posts on any of your existing blogs by participating in Instablogs Community.

Secondly we don’t impose domains or platform on our members. Few of our external blogs run on Wordpress too. Though we recommend using our own custom script, but we just recommend it and it’s not a compulsion.

:P