In this article posted by Social Media Today: The World’s Best Thinkers on Social Media, it details how Facebook is overtaking the world.  Other social networking sites, such as Google’s Orkut is also a popular network, but lately Facebook has even overtaken that site also.  In the article, Facebook’s widespread popularity is analyzed.  A contribution to Facebook is its ability to be “globally local.”

Facebook is “globally local” because it is offered in numerous languages, and people can interact with friends locally and internationally.  Because users on Facebook stay so close, it gives users the feelings that they are closer even though distance, borders, continents, and bodies of water separate them.

A new report from eMarketer predicts that will be 1.43 billion social network users this year.  This number reflects an increase of 19.2% from 2011.  But they ask the question if local competitors, such as Japan’s Mixi or the Netherlands’ Hyves manage to hold their own against Facebook?

No one knows to the extent of which social media’s increase over the next few years, whether Facebook will continue to steadily increase, or if another social media site will take over.  Twitter, another social media site, is catching up with Facebook in the U.S.  Whether or not it will beat out Facebook is another question however.  With Twitter increasing its global reach by including a multitude of languages and offering the site worldwide, it is no doubt that Twitter will continue to increase its number of “Tweeters” over the next few years.

Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are extremely popular, according to the article, however, countries such as China (which have banned Facebook due to censorship laws,) have other social networking sites including Ozone and Renren.  Russia too, is another country that does not utilize Facebook as their main source for online social networking.  Instead, they utilize social networks Vkontakte and Odnoklassniki.  However, Facebook still reigns as third, rounding out the top three social network sites for Russia’s online networking market.

The article finishes with it talking about global marketing.  They explore the interest in LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Google+, all which are networking sites, but serve different purposes as well.  For example, LinkedIn is utilized as both a social networking site, but is also for those in the professional market.

Ultimately, the article ends with how Facebook has “the most friends worldwide.”  They also feature a lingering thought, pondering how networking sites will shift, shape, and transform over the next few years, and how these networking sites will include more than just adding friends.

As an avid Facebook user, it is interesting to see the global outreach for Facebook.  I nodded while reading the article and thought about how true it is that Facebook is mostly utilized to connect with friends across the globe.  I am one of those individuals who do have family and friends who live internationally, and find it amazing that I can interact, talk, chat, and catch up with my family and friends overseas without the hassle of traveling over the ocean.  The lingering idea that the article left me thinking in my head about how creative I could get with a networking site.  Maybe they will have networking sites that are purely just video chatting instead of interacting by writing on a friend’s Facebook wall?  Hmmm, I guess we’ll see what the future has in store for online networking sites!

Link to the article: http://socialmediatoday.com/christian-arno/470898/mapping-social-media-trends-around-world