Facebook on the verge of losing 80 percent of its users, say Princeton researchers

[Shawn Knight]

If you’ve ever felt like Facebook is little more than an epidemic spreading through society like a contagious disease, you might not be too far off base. Researchers from Princeton University have ultimately reached the same grim diagnosis, believing that...

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[mojorisin23]

RIP FB... haven't logged in in months... usually just on my bday.

I use whats app. its instantaneous and has no adds or crap.

 

[Guest]

Already gone...

 

[wastedkill]

Guessing the world also ends in 2015 like these guys also predicted, princeton people always looking for that 15minute fame just like the mayans.

 

[cliffordcooley]

+1 for FB-RIP

Guessing the world also ends in 2015 like these guys also predicted.

Not according to Bill Gates 2034 prediction. lol

 

[Guest]

No, no, no. Facebook won't lose if the company and leadership adapt to change. However, if they fail to recognize shifting sands and adapt.

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

The only way FB would go away is if people are using something else instead. What will that be, Google+? unless there's a replacement, FB will be used.

There's also a chicken and egg problem. Would you leave FB if your friends are still there, well, no. But your friends won't leave until you do. It's not like you can coordinate switching social networks with your whole extended family. Great Aunt June just got this FB thing figured out, and those casino games are pretty cool after all.

I'd say FB would have to drive them away via too many ads/restrictions/privacy issues etc.

 

[Guest]

I never had a FB account. I don't really care what a kid from elementary school ate for dinner last night or what his kids are doing at school. I guess I can hold out just a few more years...

 

[Trillionsin]

Facebook's edge that it holds, in my opinion, is that fact that my parents and grandparents are on there. I might get something else, but Facebook will always have then, therefor I'll always have my Facebook account, if not, just to talk to family. My parents and grandparents see no need to change, and will be Facebook users till death. So In a couple generations, yea.. Facebook will probably be gone, but 2015? Nope.

 

[Vrmithrax]

I find myself using Facebook less and less. It's become a morass of mind-numbingly useless status comments (I don't care what you ate for dinner, that's what Twitter is for), constant barrages of invites to the latest farmville or candy crush flavor of the week, a breeding ground for disinformation and/or hoaxes (for the weak minded who can't bother to check facts before liking and reposting things)... Generally useless, other than for the tiny glimmer of utility when I want to get in touch with friends or relatives I don't contact on a regular basis.

Add in the "auto play" videos and targeted ads that keep being mentioned as "coming soon" and I am even less inclined to spend any time on FB. And, every time a lazy company wants me to "go like us on Facebook" to get their info, rather than a real website, a puppy dies. You want my business and want me to know what you do? Build a website, put your info there, and do NOT require me to link to Facebook or tell my friends about you...

Will Facebook be close to dead by 2015? I doubt it, but I truly hope so! The mad scramble by companies to actually figure out how to advertise and provide product content, rather than rely on likes and social media spam, would be worth the price of admission. I'll bring the popcorn!

 

[Jad Chaar]

This is no way surprises me, especially with the BS that occurs behind the scenes at FB.

 

[Guest]

It's not like you can coordinate switching social networks with your whole extended family.

That's the whole point about Facebook losing young users. The teens and young adults don't like having their family on their social networks, and those are exactly the public that drives adoption of online services.

The whole reason Facebook became as successful as it did was because it started as a place for college students only, even requiring a college email address to sign up at one point. After it became more widely available, it was the teenagers (and other young adults not on college) who quickly jumped onboard. That's what Facebook had going for them, it was a great place to communicate and share photos with no parent supervision. Once parents and relatives started joining, Facebook started losing its appeal to young users and began its downward slope, and now the young userbase has been driven to smaller, more specific (and more importantly, free of parents/relatives) services like Instagram, Snapchat and WhatsApp.

 

[cliffordcooley]

The whole reason Facebook became as successful as it did was because it started as a place for college students only

Which is now irrelevant to the survival of Facebook. It is friends and families keeping Facebook alive now, not college students. And the industry trying to profit on its success is killing it. They have already killed Facebook as far as I care.

 

[Guest]

Can we get the money back from Suckerberg? Make him cry like Beber!

 

[TS-56336]

I barely even touched my FB account for months now, and when I do it was for some important convo. I feel dead inside.

 

[Archean]

I remember reading on some other tech site this exact same story, and they did mentioned that this study was conducted by people who ........ know nothing about social media, so it must be taken with big fat grain(s) of salt.

By the way, even if FB died, I wouldn't care one bit, since I only used once (with out using my actual credentials), to vote for a friend who was taking part in some competition.

Also, it is strange phenomenon that social media sites come and go at much rapid rate, but still many big players continue to invest in this area to get some foothold.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Everything has a beginning and an end. I'm just surprised FB has lasted as long as it has. I've never seen the sense in it or even had a use for it apart from the fact it was only ever good for reminding me of birthdays of my widespread family and even then I wished them with a Whatsapp message. I can't remember when I last signed in.

 

[p51d007]

As long as their are grandchildren, grandparents and both not in the same location, there WILL be facebook.

 

[Mike Steele]

I found my brother on facebook a few years ago. after signing up, people from where I grew up started sending friend requests. I accepted. I had around 230 friends to start. as time went on I cleared out people who never posted, people who posted every second, people who posted from every site they visited, people with foursquare, overly religious people, food picture people, etc. I went from 230 friends to 27 when I finally deleted the account. I opened a new one to log into sites. I've used adblock plus and social fixer to hide all the junk and I won't accept friend requests or even tell anyone I have the account. facebook, when used as they intended it, is possibly the most *****ic thing I've ever seen online...

 

[Jim$ter]

As a TECH person I use it as a tool. I'm very surprised at most of these comments. Seems like you don't realize the tool you have available. Its the same way people don't know how to use Google. I guess hate what you don't understand or what you can't see other uses for. . I use it as a resource. I can find almost anyone or any business on Facebook. Can you do that with any other service? Not even close. Who cares if the kids aren't online. They still have an account and I know if I send a message it will get to them. If I have a complaint about a product I know they will take a facebook post a lot more serious than a email or phone call. Its the best tool we all have and if you stop treating it as a toy and more of a resource and learn how to use it..maybe just maybe you won't hate it as much and would see if it disappeared it would be a a big loss. Did you know you can tweak what you see...Seeing game request? I haven't seen them for years! Seeing pictures of food? Really...Your a tech and don't know how to make facebook display what you want to see? SMH.... Hint Facebook Purity and the arrow next to post and hovering over peoples names can do amazing things.

 

[cliffordcooley]

I will never see Facebook as a tool, I'm not a Data Collection Agency or NSA.

 

[Jim$ter]

Doesn't matter how you see it. I was just telling you that there are other interesting uses for Facebook other than just playing games or seeing what people eat every day. How you use or customize Facebook to fit your needs or not use it at all is up to you.

 

[Raoul Duke]

As a TECH person I use it as a tool. I'm very surprised at most of these comments. Seems like you don't realize the tool you have available. Its the same way people don't know how to use Google. I guess hate what you don't understand or what you can't see other uses for. . I use it as a resource. I can find almost anyone or any business on Facebook. Can you do that with any other service? Not even close. Who cares if the kids aren't online. They still have an account and I know if I send a message it will get to them. If I have a complaint about a product I know they will take a facebook post a lot more serious than a email or phone call. Its the best tool we all have and if you stop treating it as a toy and more of a resource and learn how to use it..maybe just maybe you won't hate it as much and would see if it disappeared it would be a a big loss. Did you know you can tweak what you see...Seeing game request? I haven't seen them for years! Seeing pictures of food? Really...Your a tech and don't know how to make facebook display what you want to see? SMH.... Hint Facebook Purity and the arrow next to post and hovering over peoples names can do amazing things.

Seriously, do you work for Facebook? I have no use for it, never have been on it. I think as more adults get on it, the kids will get off of it. People waste a massive amount of time on it for no real purpose unless you think one of your 300 'friends' and I use that word loosely, filling you in on how they just had a great bowel movement is useful, it needs a more descriptive name like its sibling Twitter. From the Merriam-Webster dictionary "Twit- a silly annoying person" At least Twitter is descriptively named. I don't realize the tool I have available, you say? Maybe I think you are a tool for promoting Facebook, you own stock or something

 

[captaincranky]

If you’ve ever felt like Facebook is little more than an epidemic spreading through society like a contagious disease, you might not be too far off base.....[ ]......

I don't know if Facebook "a rampant disease", a plague", or a fad. I do know that it appears to me it is an, "imbecilefest", the celebration of which unfortunately, is held 24/7, and 365 days a year, instead of being contained to its rightful day, which is April 1st.

Perhaps I should rethink this, and drink the water of madness. I know, I'll show I don't believe Facebook is a fad, by using a "Hula-Hoop" as my avatar.....

 

[ShadowDeath]

Guessing the world also ends in 2015 like these guys also predicted, princeton people always looking for that 15minute fame just like the mayans.

Sooo... Facebook = Skynet?