Facebook wants you back. The worlds largest social network understands that it’s novelty is fading. Recent statistics show that the percentage of teens who rank Facebook as the number one most important social network has shrunk dramatically in the past year. The theories behind this are many. Are teens sick of using their parents social network, aka the new classmates.com or is the nature of public sharing becoming passe? A 2012 study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project revealed that teens are equally concerned about their online privacy on social networks as their parents. These results shouldn’t come as a shock for social networks such as Google or Facebook who have been losing user engagement to Snapchat, Vine and other start-ups. The new social networks are creating new ways to connect with your friends, not all 500 of them but a small social group of close friends. Remember them?
Video Credit: Verge.com
Facebook isn’t blind to this shift towards privacy and personal interactions. The company hopes to emphasize the platforms ability to broker private interactions. In the press video for Facebook’s new mobile platform Facebook Home, the developers talk about Facebook’s ability to create private groups and explain the importance of a constantly running private chat function. At one point a developer even name checks Shapchat, which is a clear message of whose path the company hopes to follow. The question is, will a shift toward private channels of communication keep the social network from becoming stagnant?
A recent article on Forbes.com calls the year 2013 the year privacy goes mainstream. Do you agree? Is 2013 the year of Google Glass, #watertown and reddit, also the year of protecting personal privacy?
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