So, from what I have gathered from several posts on here is that yes, seems like many people have either given up Facebook all together, or have greatly curtailed their use. So the talk I hear around here isn't an isolated event.

You must be reading a different thread than I am. Seems almost everyone, but a few, are disagreeing with you. :lol2:

You must be reading a different thread than I am. Seems almost everyone, but a few, are disagreeing with you. :lol2:

 

I have read where several people said they have dropped or curtailed it...regardless of the fact that Facebook is up overall. I mean, there are still billions that are out there not on it so it has a built in marketplace it can still draw from to replace those that have dropped or are much less active. So the fact that Facebook has actually grown doesn't make false the statement that a lot of people have given it up either completely or in large part.

I find this stuff interesting. I'm just going to use this thread to think out loud and see where it goes.

 

Facebook is the envy of the tech world because it’s obvious how they can make their social network profitable. It’s essentially the greatest marketing research tool in existence. Its users supply it with a vast stream of personal information then their egghead’s package up the data and sell it to marketers. You can’t get data that rich or target a super specific demographic anywhere else. How Twitter, Snapchat, et al can turn their users into dollars is not nearly as obvious.

 

The problems for Facebook are that they are getting pretty close to tapping out the American market. They’re trying to make Facebook the gateway to the internet, which would effectively force everyone who wants online to use their service (notice how many times you login to a new app or site and have the option to “login with Facebook”). But this isn’t easy. They’ve tried to expand to places like India by providing free internet service for accessing Facebook, but that’s blown up in their faces too.

 

They need users to over-share to collect more data on them. But people want to present a very selective portrayal of their lives when on social media and others are increasingly cautious about divulging too much (you might not want your in-laws or your next employer to know about that night in Vegas, for instance, which is a strange conundrum for them - the more people on the service, the less people want to share). Facebook has tried to get around this by using its site and apps to collect data on you surreptitiously, but this isn’t as rich as you telling it specifically what you like to do and buy.

 

So, I think it’s going to reach a tipping point where it’s just not going to be able to gobble up information on us the way it has been, whether because people quit logging in or just aren’t as active on it. And I also think there’s been a mild backlash to over-sharing in that I think people are wanting much more control over their online identities. Maybe Facebook will introduce a revelatory new feature that solves these problems, maybe a black swan emerges in a competitor (I’m sure Tom on Myspace didn’t foresee this), or maybe it just turns into another humdrum company. Who knows? But it’s all very interesting. I think there’s interesting another angle about the relationship between social media and government too, but that’s for another day.

Great minds think alike, I've never had a Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter account.

 

Well that makes three of us then LB...never had any of those accounts either...at the risk of giving Guru a big head, BGP is what I check out most evenings. Don't have time to get on the other stuff too...

I'm hearing FakeBlock is the next big thing. That George Maharis fellow has something going.

Facebook is like anything else. It is great in moderation. I love getting reconnected with old friends and seeing pictures of kids and grandkids of my friends. I may post something once a month, and laugh at things people say.

 

I do not care to see photos of what you are having for dinner, nor to I care about your daily rambling thoughts. I love going out to dinner with great friends, occasionally talking stupidly, without the fear that a photo or video will show up on Facebook the next day.

 

Facebook is what you make of it.