Tag archive: social networking site

Though Facebook growth may be slowing here in the US, the social networking service has been doing very well overseas; especially in Brazil. In fact, at the end of 2011, the service pulled into the top position for Brazilian social networking sites and surpassed the long-favored Google Orkut service. According to comScore, Facebook managed to attract 36.1 million monthly unique visitors by the month of December in 2011. The rapid growth in… Read More

Earlier this year, a Twitter memo leaked revealing how the site planned to implement a major advertising campaign. The document made mention of “Promoted Tweets”, which until now hadn’t been fully introduced to your Twitter stream. But now, they are reportedly just around the corner from fully hitting your feed. So if you thought Twitter was inundated with ad-like Tweets before, just you wait. According to Financial Times, Twitter is… Read More

Yesterday Facebook announced the international rollout of its face recognition feature for tagging photos. The tool was implemented for North American users way back in December, at which point people went through the obligatory Facebook-privacy scare phase. Compared to some of the site’s other updates, however, the fallout was mild. But now that Facebook face recognition has made its way overseas, it’s time for a renewed round of outrage. Why… Read More

Now that Groupon has filed its IPO, the geo-social-e-commerce scene needs a new favorite. And AirBnB is ready and willing to claim that spot. The site combines social media with vacation rentals to create a community of home owners and travelers who want to make renting a space easier. Its simple interface and focus on renters' reputations make it user friendly without being unprofessional, and investors are taking notice. The company… Read More

We were first introduced to Altly about a month ago, when ex-MySpace exec and former CEO, Dmitry Shapiro, tweeted that he was creating an alternative to Facebook. Other than that vague premonition, the site’s been coated in a thick layer of ambiguity. But now it appears it’s got some legs in the form of $1 million Shapiro has raised – with one of the investors being none other than Tom Anderson of MySpace fame himself. The site has two major… Read More

A recent Consumer Reports survey found that roughly 7.5 million Facebook accounts belong to users younger’ than 13 and that as many as 20 million are under 18. While that might seem like a relatively low number given Facebook's 500+ million users, being a minor with a Facebook account is increasingly becoming a scary thing: Cyber-bullying on the site has reached frightening proportions and child predators are a well known concern… Read More

According to AllThingsDigital, Groupon wants to file for its long-rumored IPO this week, and may be doing so without approval from its bankers. It’s been reported that Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are leading the offering together, but according to inside sources Groupon is in a rush to tie up loose ends and might not have the patience to wait to get all of its finances in line. Groupon’s value has risen to an estimated $15 billion or so,… Read More

According to the Wall Street Journal, Facebook is getting closer and closer to an IPO. The company has an enviable problem on its hands: Apparently it’s making too much money and will likely earn more than $2 billion this year. Insiders with information on Facebook’s finances say that its growing faster than its own expectations, and is likely on track for a 2012 IPO. If the WSJ’s sources are correct, the news would line up with Facebook IPO… Read More

A Facebook lobbyist recently said that perhaps the site was allowing “too much free speech” in countries that were not used to the luxury. The statement sounded something like a hint that the social networking site would be willing to make concessions in certain situations – certain situations like a market of 450 million Internet users who are subject to strict government censorship. The Facebook-China rumor mill has been churning for years… Read More

Last week, it was reported that MySpace’s days were numbered and the sale process was going to hit full swing soon. Apparently it has, and as could have been assumed, it’s not going to be pretty. TechCrunch claims to have obtained a copy of MySpace’s very confidential pitch plans as penned by News Corp. As could be expected by any company trying to peddle its struggling Web property, News Corp is being overly optimistic about MySpace’s future.… Read More

After severe job cuts last month and news that disgruntled ex-Huffington Post writers will sue, AOL is about to hire hundreds of new writers. According to Bloomberg, part of the site’s restructuring will include hiring up to 800 full-time new staff members for Patch, which focuses on localized content. Good news for unemployed writers out there – bad news for current AOL and Huffington Post freelancers, many of which the hiring spree will… Read More

MySpace’s fate is decided: The former top dog of the social networking world has seen better days and will be sold to the highest bidder. Its chapter as an independent site is quickly coming to a close, as AllThingsDigital claims this coming week it will open itself up for sale negotiations. Despite its extremely depressing financial history, there are a handful of companies interested in MySpace, and it could be sold within two weeks time. So… Read More

Whether for better or worse, social media continues to play an increasingly important and influential role in journalism. If the Internet put information at our fingertips, social networks are annotating, researching, and sourcing it for us. That’s not to say it’s destroyed reporting (although, plenty say it has), but it’s definitely changed it. In some cases it’s made it trickier for writers to know what’s real and what’s not: Too many average… Read More

Twitter has been going through some changes lately – changes that aren’t likely to end anytime soon. Reinstated exec Jack Dorsey recently returned to the company’s lineup, and promised that new things were on the horizon for the microblogging site. Dorsey pointedly said he wanted to tweak Twitter’s UI, and he has delivered… to varying results. The site has had a seemingly endless rotation of homepage alterations, so it should come as no surprise… Read More

Recent events have led to plenty of discussion regarding the Internet and social activists’ safety. The civil unrest sweeping through the Middle East and surrounding countries spurred by social media has resulted in horrific violence. Significant dissidents have disappeared, and their digital dependence, put into the wrong hands, only contributes to their downfall. Of course, there have been other scares. There’s ample reason to believe that the… Read More