Has Facebook Succeeded Myspace?

Everything in the world is driven around competition, and social networking is no different. Social networking is a place for friends to easily communicate with one another and even meet new ones in the process, and there have always been the two giants of Facebook and Myspace battling for control over the people. Recently, however, Facebook has grown exponentially in popularity, recruiting thousands or new members every day. Some are beginning to say that Myspace has been defeated by Facebook, as it falls behind in number of users.

Myspace started in August 2003, before Facebook existed on the internet. It was based off Friendster, a website launched in 2002 that pioneered the concept of social networking websites. It became popular very quickly, helped by the fact that it had a smooth launch and that it recruited members from a previous social networking website, eUniverse. Before long, every teenage and his or her friend had signed up on Myspace to set up their profiles and write to others online.

While Myspace is extraordinarily successful, there have been several questions raised about the dangers of forming a profile and chatting on the website. Cyber bullying and the presence of predators have scarred the reputation of Myspace, scaring many would-be visitors from signing up. Facebook appeared in February 2004, initially appealing only to college students and promoting themselves as a safer alternative to the now-dangerous Myspace.

Facebook grew more slowly at first due to its restricted audience, but it soon opened up to the general public and passed Myspace in number of unique visitors in April 2008, making it the most popular social networking site in the world. While Facebook provides significantly less customization than Myspace, it is also in turn safer and cleaner, making it more appealing to users. It also provides features such as "tagging" photos, and expands on most of the features that Myspace already provides. Myspace’s growth has suffered, and falling behind Facebook has forced it to lay off 1/3 of its employees in early 2009.

While it may seem the Myspace is down, it is not out. It still holds a strength among bands because it allows HTML customization of pages. This makes it convenient for starting bands to post advertisements of their upcoming shows, etc. Myspace has also provided Myspace Music, allowing musicians to upload MP3 music files and allow visitors to listen to their songs.

Facebook has since officially become the most popular social networking site in the world, receiving thousands of new members daily. Myspace has been left in the dust, but it is trying to bounce back by introducing new features and keeping its stronghold with musicians and bands. Can it come back? Perhaps the ill reputation of Myspace may wear off over time, and a revolutionary new feature will be introduced to attract users back to one of the most important pioneers of social networking. Or perhaps Facebook will be hit with a serious issue that will scare people away from their website. Only time will tell which survives.