Facebook continues to grow and has now overtaken MySpace as the number 1 social networking site for US users. Now 70 million users visit both Myspace and Facebook on a monthly basis. For such a large site then a 97% growth rate is still impressive for Facebook.

The table also shows the annual growth of Twitter which continues to be impressive

Nielsen produced a report on social networking which has some interesting facts on Facebook, but also shows that we should nto underestimate MySpace

• In the U.S.  total minutes spent on social networking sites has increased 83 %YOY
• In minutes in April 2008 to 13.9 billion in April 2009, making it the No. 1 social networking site when ranked by total minutes for the month.
• 
• With 120.8 million video streams, Myspace.com was the No. 1 social networking destination when ranked by streams and total minutes spent viewing video. Myspace visitors spent 384 million minutes viewing video on the site, with an average of 38.8 minutes per viewer. In comparison, Facebook visitors spent only 113.5 million minutes viewing video in April, with an average of 11.2 minutes per video viewer.
• In April 2009, visitors aged 25 to 34 and 35 to 49 were the highest indexing age groups on Facebook, being 27 percent and 23 percent more likely to visit the site than the average user, respectively.
• The highest indexing demographics on Myspace.com was people aged 18 to 24 and 12 to 17.

Facebook is clearly the social networking site for adults, however it is important to see that MySpace still has incredible strength especially for the younger generations.

Facebook Connect.  Myspace Data Portability. Google Friend Connect. All of these individual services are supposed to be there to help you manage the fire hose of information that comes to you through your social graphs, but who owns that information?

The idea behind Facebook Connect and all of the other connect services, is to make all of the social media sites easier to use. Basically, the thought is that users will be able to log onto other websites using their Facebook ID, and see their friends’ activities on other sites as well. They’re also giving members the chance to broadcast their actions on the partner sites to their friends on Facebook, kinda like Beacon did.

The thing that struck me most about these services was the fact of who owns the information you’re putting online, and from there, how these services will use that information. Knowing who you are, who your friends are and what you’re doing online and where, is one of the cornerstones to a fully-targeted advertising campaign.  All that freely flowing data to all the other social networks is a boon for any advertiser because it offers up a full personal profile.

So, the question, for me at least, becomes, just how much information do you allow a potential advertiser to know? Is it a good thing that, for example, an advertiser knows your favorite color is red and you are a die hard Canucks fan, and so their ad servers show you a limited-edition, red-shirted Johnny Canuck? Is that really going to make you want to click through that ad and purchase that limited edition?

I just don’t know how comfortable I am with all of this targeted-advertising thing. It feels slightly… smarmy somehow, in the way that fortune tellers or snake oil salesmen told you exactly what you wanted to hear after reading the clues you give off. Are we not just giving even more clues - and this time, blatant and direct instructions on exactly what advertisers should sell us and when? Oh, and what to send all our friends too.

After all, depending on who owns all that information you’re putting out there, you could be doing just that. it certainly isn’t personal information anymore, that’s for sure.  And, how can you be sure in the Terms of Use somewhere, deep down in there, there’s not a clause that allows Myspace to sell all that info you’re putting out there? Do you really believe these sites are just trying to keep you in touch with your friends more easily. *scoff*

Good one. You almost had me there. Say, I’ve got this great bridge overlooking Manhattan I wanted to speak with you about. I’ll give ya a great deal!!

Wow. What is the world coming to? Perez reports social media news and Ted Casablanca from the Awful Truth is getting his news (about “celebrities” no less) from Techcrunch.

The Awful Truth reported that Paris Hilton and her latest beau, Benji (wasn’t that a dog?) have broken up. Ted got that news from TechCrunch, which apparently felt the need to report the news because Paris is now allegedly dating MySpace founder Chris DeWolfe.

Not sure how any of this is actually social media news but, you know what, go with it. I still find it interesting that E! Online – the outlet that lives and dies by celebrity gossip – is trolling TechCrunch for news.

In October 2007, Megan Meier hung herself after receiving devastating messages on her MySpace profile from cyberbully, “Josh Evans”.

In July 2008, Ricky Alatorre found a fake MySpace profile taking aim at the fact that he was smart, calling the page the “Ricktionary” and claiming he was gay.

"When they put it on the Internet, it’s like they took everything and multiplied it by an astronomical number," Ricky says. "It’s one thing if it’s a mean thing that somebody put in my school paper because that’s contained within a small area. Only a certain number of people will see that. But when you put it on the Internet, you are opening it up to everyone in the world." [source]

Ricky goes on to say that he "… had thought about suicide. It looked very welcoming at certain times."

This blows my mind. I was teased all throughout school as well, but my saving grace was that we barely had the internet at that point. I endured taunts in the schoolyard in elementary school, middle school was a wash, and in high school, my own personal bully covered my face in charcoal in the art room for glancing in her direction.

The Canadian Federation of Teachers says that cyberbullying is so prevalent now that they want it to be declared a separate criminal code offence.

In a draft version of the policy, the teachers’ group says it should be a punishable offence to use "information and communication technology to convey a message which threatens death or bodily harm or perpetuates fear and intimidation." The document outlines what role should be played by students, parents, teachers, school boards, teacher organizations, ministries of education, government and website providers. [source]

Until I started looking at this deeper, I always used to look at internet “trolls” as just that. Jerks and assholes with nothing better to do in their lives than spew nasty vitriolic statements that anyone can see have no basis in fact. But these trolls are just adult cyberbullies.

I don’t want to get all polly-annish on you, but come on people. What ever happened to “do unto others…”? Whatever perverse pleasure trolls and bullies get from seeing someone cry, feel alone or devastated, needs to be harnessed and channelled in a different direction. I just don’t know what that direction is or how to go about channelling it. I’m not 100% convinced that making cyberbullying a criminal offence is really going to change or stop any of them from doing this.

And for that matter, what should the site owners where this bullying occurs do about it? Sure, you can block someone, but that doesn’t solve the issue.

Where does the responsibility lie here, and who is going to be brave enough to take the first step?

This is definitely social Darwinism at it’s best (or worst?). Apparently, the people of the world are trying to create a master race.

Ok, maybe it’s not quite so abrupt as Marilyn Manson, but the underlying message is the same.

BeautifulPeople requires “application” to their little club, and they let the community vote on whether you’re hot enough to join. Feels very …school yard to me. Talk about a blow to the ego if you’re not deemed pretty enough to play!

In an article written by one of my favourite reporters, Misty Harris, the BeautifulPeople founder says they’re "separating the hippos from the cheetahs" in the social networking jungle.

As Misty put it, if you look like Charlize Theron, you’re in. If you look like Charlize Theron in Monster, you’re out.

I don’t know… I think this smacks of elitism, passive aggressive tendencies and is just plain rude. And no, I haven’t applied, and this isn’t coming from a place of bitterness. I just don’t… get it. Why do other people get to decide if you’re a hippo or a cheetah? What works for one person is not going to work for another, and the majority is generally not right.

The site founder says they’ve created a place where the "beautiful people can network and have access to the other beautiful people in the world" but… seriously? Isn’t that… facebook or myspace or friendfinder or any other random social networking site you care to name?

I will not be surprised if BeautifulPeople falls flat on it’s pretty-boy face. Overall, it’s just a little … too much for me.

I’m 79% filled with hate for Myspace. Sounds about right!

OnePlusYou Quizzes and Widgets