Posted on 03/17/2010 10:35:19 AM PDT by max americana
Social networking website Facebook has capped a year of phenomenal growth by overtaking Google’s popularity among US internet users, with industry data showing it has scored more visits on its home page than the search engine.
In a sign that the web is becoming more sociable than searchable, research firm Hitwise said that the two sites accounted for 14 per cent of all US internet visits last week. Facebook’s home page recorded 7.07 per cent of traffic and Google’s 7.03 per cent.
It is the first time that Facebook.com has enjoyed a weekly lead over Google.com. The lead may be slim, but it has become inevitable as Facebook’s popularity has grown rapidly from just over 2 per cent of visits a year ago. Heather Dougherty of Hitwise said that Facebook had “reached an important milestone” with the weekly figures.
Facebook’s membership has more than doubled in the past year, passing the 200m mark last April and 400m in February.
“The true value of Facebook and social networks is just becoming clear to marketers,” said Augie Ray, analyst at Forrester Research.
Although Facebook is enjoying rapid growth, it is only beginning to cash in on its success. Revenues at the social media company are estimated to be in the range of $1bn to $1.5bn this year, while Google took in $23.7bn last year.
I’m on Free Republic more than I am Facebook.
Now if only Iron Maiden’s website wasn’t down due to high traffic so I can get pre-sale tickets...
I wonder what percentage of their increase is due to the addition of Sarah Palin and her fans??
IMO, Facebook is a fad and will probably not exist in its current form in 10 to 20 years.
A few years back, Myspace was the place where everyone went (well, not me). Now, it is facebook and twitter.
I do not understand the fascination with any of these.
Not as big as the FB page “who’s bigger, Obama or a squirrel?”
I have been using Bing for over a year now as a search engine.
If I’m not on FR I’m on Facebook.
It’s a great way to keep up with friends and family.
That said, I am NOT Facebook friends with anyone I work with. One must keep their personal life separate from their professional life.
Networking and building relationships. They are both huge and amazing political tools for getting around the MSM and taking the message directly to the voters, Reagan style.
Being able to find old friends on Facebook you thought you'd never see again has been a very good thing, at least for me.
Facebook is allot of things, but not a fad.
that’s a good idea.
There is nothing on the internet that will exist in its current form in 10 to 20 years. Everything is constantly being upgraded and tweaked.
Well, maybe the Drudge Report will be the same.
Facebook is a really cool way to find old military buddies!
I think that a move to social network based entertainment distribution has a bit to do with it.
In the early days of independant internet published musicians, I found new bands and ensembles through the original MP3.com when it was an indy publishing site.
Now I find bands and even new book authors through networks of friends, and most of those musicians and authors have a facebook account which gives the public news and updates on performances appearances, and new releases. With maybe a free song or free short story now and again.
I resisted joining Facebook until my sister and daughter twisted my arm. It’s been pretty neat. Getting messages from people I haven’t seen for thirty years ... since we were little kids. My old grade school, middle school and high school even have Facebook pages. I have found it interesting but remain careful about who I add as “friends”.
I don’t go there often. A guy in our company was just let go yesterday for a post on his facebook about his boss. HE DIDN’T POST IT - but it was there to be seen by the wrong person.
Potential employers AND employers ARE looking if they can!
Me. Will never join any social networking site. I hate people.
LOL
Facebook seems to have a bigger following that myspace did. It was more for the younger crowd. Facebook was called by some the myspace for grown ups and is used by so many different people. It’s how I tend to keep up with my best friend, who is often busy and have talked to people I normally wouldn’t see again in this life or would only say “hello” to because of distance or time.
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