Facebook Surpasses Google as Most Visited Website in US
Facebook Inc. has become the most visited website in the United States, with 8.9% of all US website visits between January and November 2010, according to Experian Hitwise. This milestone highlights the growth of social networking over search engines and Internet portals. Facebook's popularity has led to concerns for Google, as it could potentially disrupt Google's ad revenue and growth potential.
Key Takeaways:
- Facebook surpassed Google as the most visited website in the US in 2010, with 8.9% of all US website visits between January and November.
- Google's main site ranked second with 7.2% of all US website visits during the same period.
- Facebook first topped Google on a week-to-week basis in March 2010 and has maintained its lead throughout the year.
- The company's growth can be attributed to the addition of games, revamping its news feed, improving chat features, and offering more security options.
- Facebook aims to increase its e-commerce partnerships to allow friends to recommend products to each other in a more sophisticated manner.
- Google still holds the top position when accounting for all of its sites, including YouTube.
Statistics:
- 8.9% of all US website visits between January and November 2010 went to Facebook (Experian Hitwise).
- Google's main site accounted for 7.2% of all US website visits between January and November 2010 (Experian Hitwise).
- Facebook first topped Google on a week-to-week basis in March 2010.
- Google was the most-visited site in the US in 2008 and 2009.
Sources:
- Experian Hitwise
- Tom Taulli, an independent researcher on initial public offerings.