History of Social Media

By kdw22

  • Precursors to social media

    Usenet systems were first conceived by Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis. Usenets allowed users to post articles or posts (aka news) to newsgroups. Usenets are mostly responsible for the development of newsreader clients, the precursor to RSS feed readers used to follow blogs and news sites today. Group sites such as Google Groups and Yahoo! Groups use many conventions established by the original usenet systems. http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/10/the-history-and-evolution-of-social-media/

  • Classmates.com

    Originally launched as a list of school affiliations. The site, founded by Randy Conrads, later incorporated features like member profiles and friends lists. http://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/then-and-now-a-history-of-social-networking-sites/

  • First recognizable social media site

    SixDegrees was based on the theory somehow associated with actor Kevin Bacon that no person is separated by more than six degrees from another. SixDegrees.com folded completely just after he millennium. http://www.digitaltrends.com/features/the-history-of-social-networking/

  • Google Founded

    Google is founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while attending Stanford University. Its mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. They have grown to serve millions around the world. https://www.google.com/intl/en/about/company/

  • Launch of Wikipedia

    An on-line encyclopedia that was developed by Larry Senger, Jimmy Wales, Rick Gates and Richard Stallman. The project was specifically designed to have no central organization control editing. The first year only developed 12 articles and looked for ways to create more articles. The project for an appeal for volunteers to engage in content creation was made on January 17, 2001. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Wikipedia

  • LinkedIn

    One of the first mainstream social networks devoted to business. Originally, LinkedIn allowed users to post a profile (basically a resume) and to interact through private messaging. They also work on the assumption that you should personally know the people you connect with on the site. http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/10/the-history-and-evolution-of-social-media/

  • Facebook launches

    Mark Zuckerburg, a 19-year old from Harvard University launches Facebook for Harvard students and alumni to communicate. It later expands to other educational institutions prior to be coming public. http://www.businessinsider.com/how-facebook-was-founded-2010-3

  • Yelp

    YELP connects people with great local businesses. Yelp communities have taken root in major metros across 32 countries. By the end of Q2 2016, Yelpers had written approximately 108 million reviews, making Yelp the leading guide for real word-of-mouth on just about everything. Approximately 69 million unique visitors visited Yelp via mobile web and approximately 73 million unique visitors visited via desktop on a monthly average basis the Q2 2016. https://www.yelp.com/press

  • YouTube

    YouTube was the first major video hosting and sharing site, where users could upload videos and share them. Other users can upload them and embed them in other websites. Viewers have the ability to comment, rate, and subscribe to favorite channels of video creators. http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/10/the-history-and-evolution-of-social-media/

  • Bebo

    Michael and Xochi Birch found Bebo – the name stands for ‘Blog Early, Blog Often’. Teens who missed the MySpace bandwagon sign up in droves, and spend hours rearranging their ‘Top Friends’ lists http://www.business2community.com/social-media/brief-history-social-media-01203208#GXzGER6ALJHVKAop.99

  • Twitter

    Inspired by Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, Noah Glass and Evan Williams to create Twitter, a service that allowed users to send “tweets” of 140 characters or less. April 2007, Twitter is spun off from Obvious Corp. into a separate company, Twitter, Inc. The first hashtag, by user Chris Messina, debuts on Twitter in August 2007. June 2012, the Twitter bird design is launched. https://about.twitter.com/company/press/milestones
    http://historycooperative.org/the-history-of-social-media

  • Pinterest

    Pinterest launches as an invitation-only image inspiration service where thousands of women attempt to recreate pinned DIY projects http://www.business2community.com/social-media/brief-history-social-media-01203208#GXzGER6ALJHVKAop.99