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FirstMonday,Volume20,Number54May2015

ThispapertellsahistoryofFacebookfrom2004to2013.Itpresentsthebigpicturebyfocusing
onFacebookasitpresenteditselftoauser,thatistheavailablesemioticandinteractional
elements(e.g.,profile,wall,feed,commercials,etc.)aswellasthefunctionsanduseformswhich
theseelementsmadepossibleforavarietyofactortypes(profileowners,groups,companies,
softwaredevelopers,etc.).Inaddition,FacebooksdevelopmentisinscribedinalongerWeb
historicalperspectivewithaviewtoidentifyingageneralmechanismforInternetdevelopment.
Contents
1.Introduction
2.20042006:Whoareyou?
3.20062008:Whatareyoudoing,andwhen?
4.20082013:Whereareyou?
5.ThedevelopmentofFacebook20042013
6.FacebookinaWebhistoricalperspective

1.Introduction
InJune2007IjoinedanInternetsitewhichIhadneverheardofbefore.Itwassomethingcalled
Facebook.IjoinedbecauseIwastoparticipateinaninternationalInternetresearchconference,
andtheorganisershadsetupasocalledgrouponthisWebservice,whichwasalmost
unknowninDenmarkatthetime.Themostpopularnetworkingservicebackinthosedayswas
MySpace[1].TherewereonlytwopeoplethatIcouldaddasfriends:twocolleagueswhoI
actuallythoughtwerealreadymyfriends.IntheearlydaysofFacebook,alotofpeopleprobably
feltthesameasIdid:thiswasunknownterritory.Butthingshavechangedfast,andinearly
2013therewere3,037,000DaneswithaFacebookprofile[2].Thephenomenonhasbecomean
integralpartoftheeverydaylivesofmanypeople,aswellasbeingpartofourpoliticaland
culturallives.
ButwhatdidFacebookactuallylooklikewhenitwaslaunchedin2004,andhowhasitdeveloped
intheperiodfrom2004to2013?Havetherealwaysbeenautomaticstatusupdates,andhas
therealwaysbeenanoptiontoLikethings?AndwhenweretheFacebooklogosthatcannowbe
seeneverywhereinthedigitalworldfirstintroduced?Thechangesmadeduringtheshorthistory
ofFacebookhavebeenbothbigandrapidasamatteroffact,Facebookwassoboringwhenit
wasfoundedthatitwouldprobablynothavebeensuccessfulinthatformtoday.
ItisdifficulttoaccountbrieflyforallareasofthehistoryofFacebook.Thus,whatfollows
pretendstobeneitherthehistoryofFacebook,norahistoryofFacebook.Ratherisitanoutline
ofahistoryofonesingleelementofFacebook,namelythetextualandinteractivemedia
environmentthatuserscanseeandinteractwithontheWebsiteandonmobilemedia.Ortobe
slightlymoreprecise:theelementsavailableforusersofFacebookwithregardtosemioticsand
interaction,aswellasthefunctionsandusestheseelementshavefacilitatedforvarioustypesof
users[3].Thisleavesoutmanyothertopicswhichwouldalsohavebeenveryrelevant:
Facebookasacompany,thewayusersactuallyuseFacebook,privacysettings,censorshipof
content,Webdesignandaesthetics,Facebookaspartofabroaderculturalhistory,tomention
justafew.Itshouldalsobestressedthattheaimislimitedonlytotheaccountingofwhathas
happenedinFacebooksdevelopmentasmediatext,andnotwhyithashappened,forinstanceas
aconsequenceoftheinterplaywitheconomicfactors,privacyissues,userfeedback,etc.
Therefore,thispaperismerelyamodestcontributiontowhatmaylaterbecomethehistoryof
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Facebookinthehandsoffuturehistorians.However,foregroundingthetextualandinteractive
mediaenvironmentconstitutesanimportantfirststeppingstone,sincewehavetoknowwhat
Facebookactuallylookedlikeandwhatcouldbedonewithitinthepastbeforewecanbroaden
thehistoricalscopeandidentifysomeofthereasonsforthedevelopmentofFacebook.
Thehistoricalanalysisseekstoshedlightontwoissues:Whathasactuallyhappenedinthe
developmentofFacebook?Andisthereageneraldevelopmentmechanisminthehistoryof
Facebookasamediatext?Theanswertothefirstquestionwillinvolveachronological
presentationanddiscussionofFacebooksmostimportantphenomenaandeventsintermsof
semioticsandpossibilitiesofinteractionwhereastheanswertothesecondwillplaceFacebookin
abroaderInternet/Webhistoricalperspective.
Paradoxicallyenough,thegenerallyhighlevelofinterestinFacebookintheacademicliterature
isnotbalancedbyanequallyhighlevelofinterestinthehistoryofFacebook[4].Therearea
fewjournalisticcompanybiographieswhicharenotacademic,butwhichareveryusefulsources
[5].TherearenoproperhistoricalresearchanalysesofFacebookasawhole,buttherearea
fewhistoricalanalysesofindividualFacebookfeatures,e.g.,thedevelopmentofprivacysettings
20052011[6],ortheuseandperceptionofFacebook20062008[7],ortheadoptionof
Facebookinthe2006and2012campaignsfortheU.S.Congress[8].
ForWebhistorians,however,itisalsoachallengetowritethehistoryofFacebook,especially
when,asisthecasehere,thefocusisonFacebookasamediatext,wheretheactualWebsiteis
pivotal.OnereasonforthisisthatboththecontentandthevariousversionsoftheWebsiteare
regularlydisabled[9].ItisalsoproblematictostudyFacebookasacompany,becauseitis
difficulttoobtainaccesstofirsthandsourcessuchasminutesandotherinternaldocuments.The
followingdiscussionisthereforeessentiallybasedontherelevantfirsthandsourcesthathave
beenavailable.Foronething,screenshotsetc.ofFacebookfoundontheopenWeb,orHTML
versionsfromtwoWebarchives(theDanishNetarkivet[http://netarkivet.dk/]andtheU.S.
LibraryofCongressWebArchives[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/lcwa/html/lcwahome.html]
respectively).FacebookisnolongeravailableintheU.S.InternetArchive(archive.org)because
Facebookaskedtoberemoved.Incidentally,thedisadvantageofscreenshotsfromtheopen
Webisthattheiroriginanddatingmaybedifficulttodetermine.Andforanotherthing,the
followingsubsitesareusedatfacebook.com:Facebooksowntimeline,whichcoverstheperiod
fromFebruary2004tothepresentday,butwhichisnotparticularlydetailedandthereforeoften
linkstotheFacebookBlog(coveringAugust2006toJanuary2012)andtoFacebookspress
releases(coveringFebruary2007tothepresentday).Unlessotherwiseindicated,thesourceof
thedatesofFacebookpagesisoneofthesethreeWebsitesatfacebook.com.Finally,statistics
regardingthenumberofusershavebeenpublishedbyFacebook.Theinformationshould
thereforebeviewedwithsomecaution,asithasnotbeenverifiedbyothersources.
Inthefollowingsection,thehistoryofFacebookasamediatextisdividedintothreephases:
20042006,20062008and20082013.Thisdivisionintophasescorrelatestochangesonthe
Websiteandtothefunctionalitiesavailabletousers.Ifanotherpointoffocushadbeenselected
fordiscussion,thephaseswouldmostlikelyhavebeendifferent.ThechronologyofFacebookis
analysedandinterpretedthroughfiverecurringthemes:profileandnetwork,sharing,
commercialactivity,outsidetheWeb,andsoftwaredevelopment.Attheendofthepaper,there
isarepresentationofthedevelopmentinthenumberofFacebookusersandatimelineshowing
themainphenomenaandeventsontheWebandonFacebook.

2.20042006:Whoareyou?
On4February2004theWebservicethefacebook.comopenedforstudentsatHarvardUniversity
inCambridge,Massachusetts.ThefacebookmadeitpossibleforHarvardstudentstocreatea
profilepagewithpersonalinformationandtomaintaincontactwitheachother.Theonly
requirementswerethatyouhadtohaveanemailaddressendinginharvard.eduandyouhad
tobemorethan18yearsold.Thefacebookreferstoitselfasanonlinedirectorythatconnects
peoplethroughsocialnetworksatcollegesanduniversities[10].Organisationsandbusinesses
werenotallowedtocreateaprofile[11].Theservicewascreatedby19yearoldMark
Zuckerberg,himselfaHarvardUniversitystudent,whoranitfromacomputerinhiscollege
room.Hewasjoinedbyfourfellowstudents,andthewaythefounderspresentthemselves
clearlyshowsthatthisWebservicewascreatedbyandforyoungstudents:
MarkZuckerberg:Founder,MasterandCommander,EnemyoftheState
EduardoSaverin:BusinessStuff,CorporateStuff,BrazilianAffairs
DustinMoskovitz:NoLongerExpendableProgrammer,PaidAssassin
AndrewMcCollum:GraphicArt,GeneralRockstar
ChrisHughes:TheSecretWeapon[12].
Shortlyafterthesiteislaunched,ThefacebookstartedtoaddotherAmericanuniversitiestothe
network,firstofallStanford,ColumbiaandYale(FebruaryMarch),andlaterNewYork
University,MIT,CornellUniversityandothers(March).Studentsfromotheruniversitieswere
invitedtosuggestfurtheradditionstothenetworkonThefacebooksopencontactpage[13].In
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Mayofthefollowingyear,Thefacebookwasavailableto800Americanuniversities.From
September2005itwasalsoavailabletouppersecondaryschoolstudents,andinOctoberofthe
sameyearFacebook(thenamewaschangedinSeptember2005)startedopeningupto
educationalinstitutionsoutsidetheU.S.SoitwasnosurprisethatFacebookgrewrapidly:inApril
2004,twomonthsafterthelaunch,therewere70,000users,butalreadyinDecemberthisfigure
increasedtoonemillion,andinDecember2005thereweremorethansixmillionusers.
Thefacebookwasapparentlyaddictivefromtheverybeginning:Ihaveanewaddiction.Itis
powerful.Itisdisturbing.Itisthefacebook.com,theeditorialpageof34thStreetMagazine,The
DailyPennsylvanianreportedon25March2004[14].
2.1.Profilesandnetworksoffriends
ThetwomainelementsofThefacebookweretheprofileandthenetwork.Thepersonalprofile
waslinkedtoanindividualperson,anditwasvisibletoallusersofThefacebookifpermittedby
privacysettings[15].Itmayincludeinformationsuchascontactinformation,whetheryouarein
arelationship,yourpoliticalviews,yourfavouritemusic,booksandfilms,informationabout
whereyoustudy,andaphoto.Inaddition,theprofilepageshowedwhetheryouwereloggedin
andwhetherthishadbeendonefromoneoftheplacesthatappearinFacebooksdatabaseof
colleges[16].Theprofilemustnothavebeencreatedforananimal,aplace,deadobjects,
fictitiouspersons,orexistingpersonsotherthanyourself[17].
Astheownerofaprofileyouwereincludedinalargesocialnetworkconsistingofthegroupof
alluserswhoseprivacysettingsallowyoutoviewtheirinformation[18].Butyoucanalso
choosetolinktootherprofilesfriendsviahyperlinks.Thisnetworkoffriendswasshownon
yourprofilepagevialistswithphotos,eitherasalistoffriendsoralistofclassmates[19].In
addition,youcouldseeyourfriendslistsoffriends[20],andwhenyouvisitedsomebodyelses
profileyoucouldseewhichfriendsyoushare.
2.2.Sharingandcreatingcontact
BecausetheusersofThefacebookweresociallynetworkingwitheachother,theusersprofile
informationwasavailabletohisorhernetwork,whichwasthemostbasicformofsharingon
Thefacebook.Butaboutsixmonthsafterthelaunch,thesharingoptionswereextendedwiththe
introductionofasocalledWalloneachprofilepage,whereuserscouldpostmessagesfortheir
friendsandwriteontheirwalls.Userswerenowabletosharemessageswitheachother,and
lateronitbecamepossibletosharephotos(fromOctober2005).Whensharing,however,you
hadtogotoyourfriendsprofilepagestoseeiftheyhadmadeupdates,forexamplewrittennew
messagesontheirwalloruploadednewphotostotheirsite.Updateswerethusnotvisibleto
yournetworkunlesstheyvisitedyourprofilepage.However,itwaspossibletogetintouchwith
oneofyourfriendsbypokingthemorbysendingamessageandfromOctober2005itwas
possibletotagapersoninaphoto.Youdidthisbywritingwhichofyourfriendsareinthe
photoandlinkingtotheirprofiles.
2.3.Adverts
AdvertshavebeenpartofFacebookalmostfromtheoutset.Alreadyinthespringof2004,
banneradsbegantoappearontheuserprofilepages,andthisoptionwastypicallyusedby
businessesandeducationalinstitutionsthatwereofpotentialinteresttostudents.Advertscould
betargetedforuserswithspecificprofilesonthebasisoftheirage,gender,university,personal
interests,politicalviewsetc.[21]Businesseswerenotallowedtocreateaprofilepage[22],nor
wereusersofThefacebookallowedtoadvertiseontheirprofilepagesortotradewitheach
other.
2.4.Facebook,aclosedWebsiteforthefew
ThereisnodoubtthatFacebookwasasuccessinthisfirstphase,judgingbyitsgrowthinthe
numberofusersandusersenthusiasm.ButwhatmadeFacebookanovelty,andwhywasit
new?
TheindividualtextualelementsandpossibilitiesofinteractionofFacebookwerealreadyavailable
ontheInternetandtheWebbeforeFacebookstartedusingtheminmanycasesaverylong
timebefore.Afewexamples:thepersonalprofilewasusedindatingWebsites,forinstance
kiss.com(1994)andmatch.com(1995)intheU.S.networkswithfriendswereusedin
SixDegrees.com(19972000),LiveJournal.com(1999),Friendster(2002),Linkedin(2003)and
MySpace(2003)[23]sharingisoneoftheInternetsmostfundamentalfeatures,includinguntil
2004,forexample,softwareandsourcecode(atBulletinBoardSystemsinthe1980s,Web
sourcecodein1991,oftenconnectedtotheopensourcemovement[24],music(Napster,1999),
knowledge(newsgroupsandUsenetinthe1980s,Wikipediafrom2001),andphotos(Picasa,
2002,Photobucket,2003,Flickr,2004)messagescouldbewrittenonawallinblogs,whichgain
popularityinthe1990sandfinally,banneradsontheWebwereintroducedin1993.
SotheindividualelementsandfunctionalitiesofFacebookarenotnew.IfFacebookwasnewin
anysense,itwasowingtothewayitcreatedandmixedfamiliarelementsandtypesofusers.
WhatisfundamentalhereisthatFacebookmerelymakesanemptystructureavailable.Itisa
structureinthesensethatcertainoptionsareprovidedintermsofsemioticsandinteraction
(profilepages,networksoffriends,sharingofmessagesandphotos,bannerads)whichallow
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andpromoteaparticularuseandspecificusers,whilemakingitdifficultforothers(orexcluding
themaltogether)[25].Forexample,itisnotpossibletochangethelayoutoftheprofilepageor
toaddsoftwaretoFacebook.Butthestructureisemptyinthesensethatthespecificcontentto
beaddedisnotdecidedbyFacebook.Thestructuremustbefilledinbytheprofileownersor
advertiserswithactualwriting,photos,clicks,links,advertsetc.
FacebooksemptystructuremakesitpossibleforthefeaturesmadeavailablebyFacebookto
interactwiththreetypesofuserFacebookasacompany,profileownersandadvertisersby
controllingtheusersaswellasofferingthemopportunities,whichallinallcontributedtomake
theservicegrow.
ThecontentwhichtheprofileownerscansupplyforFacebooksstructuremainlyinvolved
presentingyourselfasapersonandaspartofanetwork.Inotherwords:Whoareyou?

3.20062008:Whatareyoudoing,andwhen?
ThetransitiontothesecondphaseinthehistoryofFacebookasmediatexttookplaceinthe
springof2006,andfortworeasons.Foronething,Facebookopeneduptotheworldoutsidethe
worldofeducation.Andforanother,from2006onwardsaverylargenumberofnewfeatures
werelaunchedwhichchangeFacebookradically.
InMay2006Facebookstoppedbeingapurelyeducationbasednetworkandopenedupto
employeesofcertainbusinesses,forexampleAppleandMicrosoft[26]andinSeptemberofthe
sameyearFacebookopeneduptoanyoneabovetheageof13.Onthewelcomepage,Facebook
wasdescribedasasocialutilitythatconnectsyouwiththepeoplearoundyou.Inaddition,in
2008FacebookbecameavailableinlanguagesotherthanEnglish.FirstSpanish(February)then
GermanandFrench(March)andbyJunetherewere17Facebooklanguages,including
Japanese,ChineseandItalian.2006wastheyearwhenthemembershipofFacebookstartedto
explode:from12millionusersinDecember2006to100millionlessthantwoyearslater(August
2008).
Finally,Facebookgrewsofastthatcommunicationwithuserswasprofessionalised,asreflected
inthecreationoftheFacebookBlog(August2006),wheremanynewinitiativeswereregularly
advertisedandexplained,andtheCustomerSupportTeam(October2006).Facebooks
increasedinternationalpresencewasalsoreflectedintheopeningofitsinternational
headquartersinDublin(October2008).
3.1.Newprofiletypesandnetworkoptions
TheprofilepageslinkedtoindividualswasstillthemainelementofFacebook.Butnewelements
forexpressionandinteractionwereadded,looseningtheclosebondsbetweenWebsiteand
individual.
InAugust2006,theNotesapplicationwasintroduced,allowinguserstohaveablogontheir
profilepage,eitherbywritingdirectinNotesorbyimportingblogpostsfromablogoutsidethe
FacebookuniverseinJune2007,FacebookVideowasreleased,allowinguserstoaddvideos
totheirprofilepage2008sawtheintroductionofachatfeatureallowinguserstocommunicate
withtheirfriendsinrealtime(April2008),andaredesignoftheprofilepages(July2008).
ThenitbecamepossibletocreatenewtypesofFacebookpages,apartfrompersonalprofile
pages.First,politiciansrunningformidtermelectionsintheU.S.inNovember2006were
allowedtocreateprofilepagesonFacebookinpreparationfortheelection.Thesepageswere
visibletoallusersallcandidatepageswerecollectedinanElection2006boxmadeforthe
occasion.Secondly,WebsitesknownasNetworkPages(similartoportals)werelaunchedin
April2007tocollectonepagecompilationsofinformationthatwasalreadyavailableinanetwork
(forexampleonusers,eventsandstatistics).Thesenetworkingsiteswerevisibletoeveryonein
thenetwork,withalimitededitionbeingvisibletopeopleoutsidethenetwork.Third,in
November2007itbecamepossibleforanyonetocreateprofilepagesnotonlyindividualsbut
alsorestaurants,businesses,organisations,singleissueadvocates,musicians,filmcompanies,
younameit.Whatwasnewisthatyoudidnotbecomefriendswiththeownersoftheseprofile
pages,althoughyoudidhavetheoptiontoBecomeaFan.Thisintroducedanewwayof
creatingnetworkswhichwasbasednotonmutualrelationsbetweentwoprofileownersbutona
onesidedrelationship,withtheprofileownerbecomingthefanofapage.Thesepageswere
visibletoallWebusers,notonlytouserswithaFacebookprofile.Inthisway,aFacebookpage
actuallyfunctionedlikeanyotherWebsite,buttakingadvantageofallthefeaturesand
functionalitiesofferedbytheFacebookuniverse.
Finally,inSeptember2007,itbecamepossibletosearchamongallFacebookusers,evenifyou
werenottheirfriend.AndinDecemberofthesameyear,listsoffriendswerelaunchedwiththe
optionofdividingyourfriendsintoFamily,Colleagues,orwhateveryouneedthiswasuseful
becauseFacebookhadgrownsopeoplesnetworkshadgrowntoo.In2008(May)thefeature
Peopleyoumayknowwaslaunched,suggestingthatyoumayknowyourfriendsfriendsand
wishtobecomeFacebookfriendswiththem.Thesethreeinitiativesmeantthateachindividual
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networkcouldgrowfast.
3.2.Newwaysofsharing
Notonlyaretheremoreformsofcontenttoshare,butthewaysofsharingalsochangeradically
inthisphase.
Themostimportantbreakthroughsweretheoptionofmakingstatusupdates(April2006)andthe
featuresNewsFeedandMiniFeed(September2006).Statusupdatesmadeitpossible,bymeans
ofasmallwritingarea(MyStatus)onyourownpagetotellpeoplewhatyouweredoing
withouthavingtochangeyourmorepermanentprofileinformationwheneveryoudidsomething
newthatyouwantedtotellyourfriendsabout.NewsFeedandMiniFeedmadeiteasierforyou
tokeepupwithyourfriendsactivitiesintheabsenceofastatusupdate.Whereasyoupreviously
hadtovisityourfriendsprofilepagestosecurenewinformation,itwasnowpossibletoallow
informationtoflowintoyourownFacebookpageautomaticallybydisplayingeitherallnetwork
activity(NewsFeed)oronlytheactivityofoneparticularuser(MiniFeed).Statusupdatesand
feedsaboutwhatwashappening,whatyouweredoingandwhenbecameacrucialnewbonding
optioninFacebooksnetwork.Inparticular,feedsledtoanexplosivegrowthintheradiusand
speedofmessages.AccordingtooneofthedevelopersofNewsFeed,itwasnotreallytheir
intentiontoinventaplatformthatcouldbeusedtosupportglobalactivism,butthisseemedtobe
whathadhappened:forexample,postsaboutthecreationofnewgroupsontopicssuchas
supportforDarfurorbreastcancerspreadatthespeedoflightning,makinggroupsgrowfrom
zerotohalfamillionmembersinjustafewdays(blog.facebook.com,6October2006).
AnotherimportantnewsharingfunctionalitywasMyShares(October2006),whichappearson
allWebsitesassmallFacebookicons,makingitpossibletosharealinktoasitewithyour
Facebookfriendswithasingleclick.Usershadbeenabletocopyalinkontotheirprofilepageor
theirstatusupdatesinthepast,ofcourse.Butnowthiscouldbedonequicklyandeasilybya
singleclick.IncontinuationofMyShares,aFacebooktoolbarwasdevelopedfortheFirefox
browserinNovember2006,enablinguserstokeeptrackoftheirFacebooknetworksactivityin
thebrowser,evenwhentheywerenotontheirFacebooksite,aswellasmakingitpossibleto
sharethelinktoagivensite,ifthepagedoesnotcontainthesmallshareicon.Finally,an
importfeaturewasintroducedin2008,allowinguserstoimportcontentfromothersites,suchas
photosites,directlyintotheirMiniFeed(April).Withthesefeatures,Facebookextendeditsscope
totherestoftheWeb,aswellasdrawingcontentfromelsewhereintotheFacebookuniverse.
Finally,taggingwasexpandedtoincludeapersonwhowasmentionedinNotes,forinstance,or
appearedinavideo.
3.3.Gifts,marketplaceandviraladvertising
IntheearlyyearsofFacebook,banneradsweretheonlyformofcommercialactivityonthesite,
andindividualprofileownerswerenotallowedtoadvertiseontheirprofilesortradewitheach
other.However,thiswasradicallychangedinthesecondphase,whenbanneradswerejoinedby
variousformsoftrading.
TheGiftsfeaturewaslaunchedinFebruary2007,givinguserstheoptionofbuyingsmall
Facebookgiftsfortheirfriendsandthussupportingacharitablecause.Giftsconsistedofsmall
iconscostingUS$1each,withallproceedsgoingtocancerresearch,forinstance.Theywere
storedintherecipientsgiftbox,andiftheyweredonatedpubliclyamessageappearedonthe
recipientswall.
Laterin2007(May)Marketplacewaslaunched,makingitpossibleforFacebookusersto
advertisethingstheywantedtobuyorsell,orthingstheyneeded(ajoboraccommodation,for
instance).SoMarketplacecouldbecategorisedassomewherebetweentheclassified
advertisementsandadvertsforjobsoraccommodation.
Finally,amoresophisticatedandintegratedadvertisingplatformwasaddedtothesimplebanner
advertisingplatform:theFacebookAdsservice,whichwaslaunchedinNovember2007.
FacebookAdsenabledcompaniestosetupacorporateorproductsiteonFacebook,thereby
gainingdirectcontactwithFacebookusers.UsersbecameFansofthesesites,enabling
companiestospreadtheiradvertisingmessagesvirallythroughthenetworkaswellasgathering
specificinformationabouttheFacebookactivityofusers.Companiescouldalsobeintegrated
withthesharefunctionontheirownsites,soinformationaboutwhatFacebookuserswere
sharingwiththeirfriendsonthecompanysitewasnotonlyaddedtotheusersfeedbutalso
madeavailabletothecompanyconcerned(viatheFacebookBeaconservice).
3.4.FacebookoutsidetheWebFacebookMobile
FacebookstartedlifeasapureWebservice,andthiswasstillwhereitsmainactivitywasfound.
ButduringthisphaseFacebookalsostartedextendingitsactivitiestoanotherplatform:mobile
phones.Initiallytostandardmobilephones,butlatertosmartphonesaswell.
InApril2006FacebookMobilemadeitpossibletocommunicatewithFacebookbytextmessages,
andlateritbecamepossibletouploadphotosaswellasvisitingFacebookssitefromyourmobile
phone(January2007).LessthantwomonthsafterthelaunchofthefirstiPhone,Facebookssite
wasaccessibleviaiPhone(August2007).ShortlyafterAppleopensitsAppStorethefollowing
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year,FacebookforiPhonewasready(August).
3.5.Softwaredevelopmentforeveryone
ThelastmajornewtypeofactivitylaunchedbyFacebookinthisperiodwastheFacebook
Platform(May2007),whichmadeitpossibleforsoftwaredeveloperslargecompaniesaswell
asamateurstoproduceprogramsthatcouldbeintegratedwiththeFacebookuniverse:either
programsonFacebookssite,orprogramswhichsendinformationfromFacebooktoothersites
ortheuserscomputerdesktop.AtthelaunchinMay2007,anumberofexamplesofsuch
programswerementioned,includingaprogramforbookreviews(BookReviews),producedby
FacebookandAmazontogiveFacebookusersthechancetowriteanddisplaybookreviewson
theirprofilepage,wheretherewasaBuyfromAmazonbuttonforeachreview.EachFacebook
userdecidedwhichprogramstheywantedtousebyaddingthemtotheirprofilepage.
Therewasalotofinterestintheinitiativeamongsoftwaredevelopers:thebetaversion
FacebookDevelopmentPlatformwasavailableinAugust2006andinMarch2007the
FacebookDevelopersgrouphadmorethan4,000members.Justoveroneyearlater,400,000
developersusedPlatform.FacebookPlatformmadeitpossibletosupplyanewtypeof
contentforFacebook:softwareprogramsasanintermediatelayerofcontentbetweenthe
contentofprofileownersandtherestoftheFacebookstructure.
3.6.Facebook,apowerfulmediamachinefortheflowofinformation
Themaincharacteristicoftherelativelyshortperiodfromthespringof2006untilthesummerof
2008,whichwasthesecondphaseinFacebookshistoryasamediatext,wasstrongandrapid
expansion:thenumberofusersgrewtheoptionsforexpressionandinteractionincreased
anybodycouldsetupaprofilepageFacebookexpandedtomobilemediaandotherWeb
servicesandnewtypesofuserwereseen:profileownerssuchasshops,companies,software
developersandownersofotherdigitalservicesthatinteractwithFacebook.
ItisstilltruetosaythatnoneofthenewformsofactivityonFacebookwereactuallynew.The
ICQinstantmessagingprogramappearedin1996Webfeedstoautomaticallysendupdated
informationwereusedinRSS(1999)andAtom(2003)microbloggingwasusedinJaiku(2006
2012)andTwitter(2006)videostreamingwithRealsoftwarehadbeenpossiblesince1997,and
videosharingstartswithYouTube(2005)chatstartedwiththeBitnetRelay(1985)tradingon
theWebstartedinthemid1990s,withoneofthefirsttradersbeingamazon.com(1995)trading
inclosedcomputernetworkslikeProdigystartedin1984,withtradingbetweenprivate
individualsstartingwiththeAmericanCraigslist(1995)andeBay(1995)ithadbeenpossibleto
targetWebadvertisingandmonitoruserbehavioursincethemid1990sanduserswere
includedinsoftwaredevelopmentintheopensourcemovement(forinstance).
Facebookwasnewbecauseofthewayitcombinedalltheseformsofactivity,andbecauseofthe
waytheywerecloselyconnectedandintegratedwithinajointuniverse.
Oneimportantprerequisitemakingitpossibletohandletherapidexpansioninallvariableswas
thatFacebookwasstillbasicallyanemptystructure.ItwastruethatFacebookaddedawealthof
newstructuralelementsbutitwasstillprofileowners(nowincludingcompanies,software
developersandownersofotherdigitalservices)whosuppliedcontentandspecificrelationsto
thestructure.Thewayinwhichthestructuralelementsweremixedseemedtobebalanced
constantly,enablingmoreandmoreuserstocoexistandwanttobepartofFacebook,despite
differencesintheirinterests.
TheconsequenceofthemanynewinitiativeswasthatduringthisperiodFacebookacquireda
newgeneralfunction.WhilethequestionWhoareyou?wasinfocusinthefirstphase,the
activitiesinthesecondphasetendedtosupportthequestionWhatareyoudoing,andwhen?
instead.ThedigitalstructureinwhichthisWhatareyoudoingwhen?tookplacewas
characterisedbytwosimultaneousbutcontradictorytendencies.OntheonehandFacebook,
whichwasasinglesiteinthefirstphase,expandedtootherWebsites,programsandplatforms
bysupplyingthemwithcontent(viaPlatform,toolbar,MobileandApps,forinstance).Buton
theotherhand,Facebookdrewanincreasingproportionofitscontentfromtheoutsideworld(via
Notes,MyShare,toolbar,ImportandAds).Inotherwords,Facebooksemptystructure
wasbasedonatwowaytransferofinformation.Whenthistwowaytransferofinformation
acrosstheFacebookinterfacewascombinedandintegratedwithstatusupdatesandfeeds(which
werebasicallyinternalmechanisms),thelargeradiusandhighspeedofthesefeeds
supplementedthewaythetransferwasachieved.TheresultwasthatingeneraltermsFacebook
workedlikeapowerfuljunctionorpointoffocus,withagreatdealoftheactivitythattookplace
ontheWeboutsideFacebookflowedthroughtheFacebookuniverseinoneformoranotherinan
exponentialprocess:thecontentofothersitespassingthroughFacebookwasredistributedto
otherpartsoftheWeb,fromwhereitwasretrievedbyFacebookandcombinedwithother
content,andsoonadinfinitum.ThelimitstotheFacebooksitebecameporous,andthesite
becamearapidlyexpandingmachinefortheflowofinformation.

4.20082013:Whereareyou?
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Bycontrastwiththerapidexpansionofnewfunctionalitiesduringthesecondphase,therewere
farfewernewinitiativesduringthethirdphase.Evenso,Facebookcontinuedtoexpandateven
greaterspeedthanbefore:from150millionusersinJanuary2009tomorethan500millionin
July2010.Theonebillionmarkwaspassedon14September2012.Facebookwasnowusedby
oneseventhoftheworldspopulation,andbyjustunder50percentofeveryonewithanInternet
connection.From2009onwardsFacebookwasalsoavailableinover70differentlanguages,
includingLatin,andhadapresenceonallcontinents,evenAntarctica.ThestructureofFacebook
asacompanyalsochangedwhenitenteredthestockmarket(NASDAQ)on18May2012.The
Facebookphenomenonreallypenetratedmanyaspectsofculture:forinstance,theverbto
unfriendwaschosenasthewordoftheyearintheNewOxfordAmericanDictionary
(November2009),andMarkZuckerbergwaselectedPersonoftheYearbyTimeinDecember
2010.ThereasongivenforchoosingZuckerbergwasthatWehaveenteredtheFacebookage,
andMarkZuckerbergisthemanwhobroughtushere.Andfinally,thecreationofFacebookwas
portrayedinthefilmTheSocialNetwork,whichopenedinOctober2010(directedbyDavid
Fincher).
4.1.Profilesandnetworksoffriends
Inthethirdphasetherewerecountlesschangesinlayout,expansions,alterationsandchangesin
theprofilepagesaswellasthemanyexpression/interactionelementsandpagetypesthatwere
presentinpreviousphases.Newelementswereaddedaswell.
Firstofall,variousformsoflivestreamingwereaddedtovideoasamodeofexpression.Nearly
19millionviewerswatchedthefirstlivevideostreamingonFacebookinJanuary2009:the
inaugurationofthenewlyelectedU.S.President,BarackObama(incollaborationwithCNN),with
continuousfriendcommentsnexttotheliveimage.InAugust2010FacebookLive,Facebooks
ownlivestreamingtelevisionservice,openedwithguestsbeinginvitedtoastudiothat
broadcastedatspecifictimes.Aninterpersonalvideochatalsobecameavailablewiththeservice
FacebookVideoCallingincollaborationwithSkype(July2011).
Secondly,FacebooksusershadtheopportunitytoreviewtheirFacebookpastinanentirelynew
way.Timeline,launchedintheU.S.attheendof2011andtotherestoftheworldinJanuary
2012,madeitpossibletogorightbacktothecreationofaprofile,fromwhereyoucouldjumpto
anylateractivities.Thisfeatureexpandedtheprimarilyspatialorganisationofelementsina
localtimeline(connectedtofeed,photoupload,etc.)byaddingtheoptionofachronological
systemwhichwasglobalfortheentireFacebookactivityoftheprofileownerconcerned.
Thirdly,anewtypeofpagewaslaunchedinApril2010knownasCommunityPages,which
werepagesbasedonatopic,interestoractivity(Cooking,forinstance).Thistypeofpagewas
collectiveinthesensethatitwasownedbyeveryonewhouseditnotbyanindividual,
company,organisationoranyotherclearlydefinedgroup.Wikipediawasusedasthemodel,so
thesystemstartedwithinformationretrievedfromthere.
4.2.LikesandFacebookConnect
ThetypesofsharingthathavecharacterisedFacebookinthepastcontinuedandwere
expandedinvariousways.ThetrafficinandoutoftheFacebookuniversewasconstantlybeing
refinedandnewinitiativeswereadded.Forinstance,itbecamepossibletoimportfriendsfrom
anemailorInstantMessagingaccounttoFacebook,andtowriteonTwitterviaFacebook
(althoughnotfrompersonalprofiles,August2009),asmallcounterwasaddedtotheFacebook
Sharebuttonswhichwerefoundoncountlesssitesshowingthenumberoftimesthesitein
questionhadbeenshared(October2009),andSpotifywaslinkedtoFacebook(July2011).In
particular,anew,smallbutton(Like)wasaddedtotheFacebookportfolioofsharemechanisms
inFebruary2009,makingitpossibleforuserstotelltheirnetworkwhattheylikedquicklyand
easily.AtfirstthiswasonlyavailableonFacebooksownpagesbutfromApril2010itwas
availableonsitesoutsideFacebook,anditquicklybecamepopular.Oneyearafterthelaunch,
morethan10,000sitesadaywereaddingtheLikebuttontotheirpages.Likewasclearlyan
extensionofthefunctionknownasShare.
ButthemostfundamentalnewinitiativewasFacebookConnect,whichwaslaunchedin
December2008havingbeenavailabletodeveloperssinceAugustthatsameyear.Thedistinctive
featureofFacebookConnectwasthatitenabledFacebookuserstotaketheirprofilesandall
theinformationaboutactivities,interests,favouritefilms,books,etc.withthemandloginusing
theirFacebookusernameandpasswordtoanysiteoutsideFacebookthattookpartinthe
service.Thesesitesthenhadtheopportunitytocustomiseandpersonalisetheirsiteforthe
profilewhichloggedon.Italsoworkedtheotherwayaround:whenyouwereloggedonto
anotherservicewithFacebookConnect,theinformationaboutyouractivitiesonthisservice
couldbesentbacktotheFacebookuniverse.ThismeansthatFacebookConnectfunctionedin
twoways.Firstofall,itworkedasagenerallogintoawidevarietyofWebservices,sousersdid
notneedtocreateanaccountwiththeirusernameandpassword.Secondly,itwasyetanother
elementthatextendedFacebookbeyondthesiteitself,butinsuchawaythattheusersalone
electedtotaketheirentireFacebookidentitywiththemtoanothersitewithconstantfeedbackto
Facebook.ThepopularityofFacebookConnectwasdemonstratedbythefactthatitwas
availableonmorethan80,000sitesoneyearafterthelaunch.
FacebookConnectmadeitpossibletoextendtherangeofsitesfromwhichyoucouldaccess
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Facebook.Forexample,inApril2009itbecamepossibletoseeandwriteinFacebookvia
anothersiteordirectlyviaaprogramonthecomputerdesktopwithoutusingabrowser,either
withFacebookaloneinthewindoworinapplicationswhichcombineanumberofinformation
flows,e.g.,fromTwitter.FromAugustonwardsyoucouldsharephotosfromNintendogame
consolesbyusingFacebookConnect.FromNovemberonwardsyoucouldplayXboxgames
withyourFacebookfriendsaswellasusingXboxandthetelevisionscreentoaccessFacebook.
ThisdevelopmentturnedFacebookintomorethanjustaWebservice.
4.3.Giftsshutdownandreopened,FacebookCreditsandDeals
Asmentionedearlier,fromFebruary2007onwardsitwaspossibletomakedonationstospecific
charitiesbybuyingsmallFacebookgiftsforyourfriendsthroughtheserviceGifts.Inthethird
phaseGiftswasexpanded,shutdownandreopenedinanewform.Firstofall,therangeof
Giftswasexpandedtoincludenotonlycharitygiftsbutalsorealgiftssuchasecards,musicin
theformofMP3files,gifticonswithmerchandisefromfavouritesportsteams,andgiftsinthe
physicalworld(October2009).ThenGiftswasshutdownlessthanayearafterthisexpansion,
beingoneofthefewtimesthataFacebookactivitywaseverremoved(August2010).Giftswas
reborntwoyearslater(October2012),butnowwithrealgiftsyouorderedfromoneofthe
companiesconnectedtotheservice,afterwhichtherecipientreceivedamessagewithapicture
ofthegift.Alternatively,theycouldgainaccesstothesegiftsontheInternet(TVseriesormusic,
forinstance).Butitwasstillpossibletomakedonationstocharities.
AsanoffshootoftheactivitiesinGifts,Facebookcreateditsownvirtualcurrency.Initiallythis
wascalledGiftCredits,andlateronFacebookCredits.YoupurchasedFacebookCreditswith
yourcreditcard(orPayPal,fromFebruary2010),usingthemtobuygiftssuchasgoodsorgame
elementsintheFacebookuniverse.FromSeptember2010,itwasalsopossibletobuyvouchers
orcreditcardsissuedforfixedamountstouseintheFacebookuniverse.
ThemostrecentcommercialinitiativewasDeals,whichmadeitpossibleforshopsnearyouto
offercheapproducts,freemerchandiseorthelikewhenyouloggedontotheirFacebookprofile
(November2010,initiallyonlyintheU.S.,butfromJanuary2011itbecameinternational).This
servicewasbasedontheabilityofmobilemediatoidentifyyourlocation.
4.4.MobilegrowthandPlaces
ThepresenceofFacebookinmobilephones,startinginthesecondphase,continuedtoexpand
fullforceafter2008.Inadditiontoregularupdatesandminoradjustments,Facebookspresence
inmobilemediawascharacterisedbythefactthatnewopportunitiescreatedbytheongoing
developmentofmobilephoneswereexploitedinclosecollaborationwithfeaturesalready
availableonFacebookssite.Youcouldsecurestatusupdatesintheformoftextmessagesfrom
June2009,youcouldchatusingmobilemediafromFebruary2010,youcouldwatchFacebook
videosonaniPhonefromJune2010,andFacebookCameramadeitpossibletotakephotos
thatcouldbestoredintheFacebookuniverserightaway(May2012).Finally,Facebookwas
availableonthelatestmobileplatform,theiPad(October2011).Thesemobileservicesquickly
becameverypopular.ThenumberofusersaccessingFacebookontheirmobilephonesgrew
from20millioninJanuary2009to100millioninFebruary2010.Duringthesameperiod,
Facebookhad150millionandapprox.350millionusersrespectively,sotheincreasewas
significant.
Themostimportantbreakthroughinrelationtomobilemedia,however,wasnotonlythat
Facebookwasbecomingincreasinglymobilebutthatthegeolocalisationoptionofmobileunits
wasconnectedtofeaturesthatarealreadypartofFacebook.FromSeptember2009youcould
seewhichofyourfriendswerenearby,andFacebookPlaceswaslaunchedinAugust2010,
connectingFacebookuserstotheirlocation.Checkinginmadeitpossibletoshareinformation
aboutwhereyouwereandwhoyouwerewithaswellasfindingoutwhichofyourfriendswere
nearby.Youcouldalsogobackintimetoseeifyouoranyofyourfriendshadbeeninthesame
locationpreviously.Placeswasbasicallylikethelocationfunctionfrom2004,butmuchmore
flexiblebecausethelocationwasdeterminedbyyourmobilephoneandnotthephysicallocation
ofthecomputer.
4.5.Softwaredevelopment
SinceFacebookgavesoftwaredeveloperstheopportunitytocreateprogramsthatcouldbe
integratedwiththeFacebookuniverseinMay2007,thousandsofsmallprogramshadbeen
developed(forinstance,therewere52,000programsonFacebookPlatforminMay2009).In
thewakeofthisgreatpopularity,averynaturalneedforacleardirectoryofprogramsarose.
ThisresultedinthelaunchofanApplicationDirectoryinMay2009,whereyoucouldfindalist
ofalltheprogramsdevelopedforFacebookssiteandothersitesandprogramsoutsidetheWeb,
aswellasmobilemedia.
4.6.Facebook,adecentralisedmediamachinefortheflowofinformation
Duringthepreviousphasefrom2006to2008,Facebookappearedtohavefoundaformthat
requiredveryfewchanges.Asaresult,thethirdphaseofFacebookshistorywasgenerally
characterisedbyconsolidationandexpansionoftheexistingframework,withveryfewnew
initiatives.Theconsolidationinvolvedadapting,developing,adjusting,mergingandmoving
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existingfunctionsofaverylargeproportionoftheactivitiesontheFacebooksite.Theexpansion
involvednotonlyusers(thenumberofusersincreasedmorethansixfold),butalsothespread
ofInternetservicesandplatformsoutsidetheFacebooksite:othersites,programsonthe
computerdesktop,mobileplatformsandgamingconsoles.Inthisrespect,twoofthemost
importantnewinitiativesFacebookConnectaswellastheservicesconnectedtothegeo
locationpotentialofmobilemediaplayedadecisiverole,astheybothmadeitpossiblein
variouswaystotakeFacebookwithyou.
Aswasthecaseinthetwopreviousphases,thenewtypesofactivitythatFacebooklaunched
duringthisphasewerealreadyfamiliarbeforeFacebookdecidedtousethem.Singlesignonhad
beenusedbyMicrosoftPassport(1999),locationbasedserviceshadbeenusedsince1999,and
theconnectionbetweenlocationbasednetworkservices,mobilemediaandcheckinhadbeen
usedbyFoursquare(2009).
However,aswasthecaseinthepast,thecrucialthingwasthatFacebookwassuccessfulin
integratingandcombiningtheseactivitiesintheFacebookuniverseinawaythatwasboth
relevantandapplicabletoalltypesofFacebookusers.AllofthiswasstillbasedonFacebookas
anemptystructure.AlthoughFacebookasacompanychangedandincreasedthenumberof
structuredelements,userswerestilltheonesthatprovidedcontentandsocialrelations.
AsaconsequenceofFacebookswayoforganisingthestructuredelementsduringthisperiod,
thepreviousmainfunctionsconnectedtothequestionsWhoareyou?andWhatareyou
doingwhen?werestillsupported,buttheywereexpandedtoincludeyetanothermain
function,connectedtothequestion:Whereareyou?Ortobemoreprecise:Whereareyouin
thedigitaluniversewithyourFacebookprofile?andWhereareyouinthephysicalworldwith
yourmobiledevice?supportedbyFacebookConnectandPlacesrespectively.
ThedigitalstructureinwhichFacebookusersnowmovedwascharacterisedbythefactthatit
waseasiertocrosstheporousbordersoftheFacebooksitethatexistedinthesecondphase.In
thesecondphasetheFacebooksitestillfunctionedtoalargeextentasthecentralunit,despite
theflowofcontentacrossitsborders.Duringthethirdphase,however,Facebookasawholewas
developingintoadecentralisedmediamachinefortheflowofsemioticcontentthatwaslocated
anywhereontheInternet,andwhosemostsignificantcoherencegeneratingfeaturewasthe
Facebooknameandlogo[27].

5.ThedevelopmentofFacebook20042013
Facebookshistoryfrom2004untilthebeginningof2013wascharacterisedbybothcontinuity
andchange.
Generallyspeaking,twotypesofcontinuitywereevidentduringtheentireperiod.Firstofall,
Facebookasacompanyprovidedadigitalspacethatstructuresthepossibleinteractionofits
usersbutwasinotherrespectsanemptyspacewhosecontentwasprovidedbyothersinthe
formoftext,pictures,sound,softwareandsocialrelationsintheformofnetworks.Secondly,
Facebookwasalwaysaccumulatingandexpanding,withmoreofeverythingconstantlybeing
addedwithintheareasofFacebooksuniverse,andnewareasappearingwhilehardlyanything
everdisappeared.
Thevariationwasprovidedbychangesinthespecificformsassumedbytheemptystructure,
accumulationandexpansionrespectively.Facebooksstructuressupportedanswerstomoreand
moregeneralquestions:Whoareyou?wasfirstsupplementedwithWhatareyoudoing,and
when?andlaterwithWhereareyou?(thedistinctionbetweenthesequestionswasborrowed
fromthetitleofablogpostonblog.facebook.com,18August2010).Facebookwasspreading
geographically.Thenumberofusersandthepossiblesocialconnectionsbetweenthemgrew,
fromstudentswithaHarvardemailaddresstoabroadrangeofverydifferentusers.This
demonstratesthatFacebookinvolvedfarmorethananumberofindividualswithprofiles.The
numberofpossiblefunctionalities,interactionoptionsanddigitalpresenceswasgrowing.The
informationcomplexityfoundintheindividualprofiles,connectionsandcontentflowof
Facebooksnetworkwasgrowing.Theseamlessintegrationandflexibilitybetweenthemany
elementsinandoutsidetheFacebookuniverseweregrowing.Allthesedifferenttypesof
structuringandexpansionweresupportedandcombinedinaclosedsite,andlaterina
centralisedmediamachinefortheflowofsemioticcontent.Finally,thismachinebecamea
decentralisedmediamechanismfortheflowofsemioticcontentwiththeconstantexpansionand
retrievalmechanismsofFacebookextendingtotheentireWeb,onanydigitaldeviceandatany
timeandanyplace.

6.FacebookinaWebhistoricalperspective
Thissectionaskswhethertheemptystructure,accumulationandexpansionwhichcharacterised
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thehistoryofFacebookintheperiod20042013wereexpressionsofamoregeneral
developmentoftheInternetandtheWeb.Inotherwords,thispartofthepaperquestions
whethertherewasageneralpatternbehindFacebooksdevelopmentasamediatext,andifso
whetherthiscanhelptoexplainhowFacebookmanagedtoremainsignificantandcontinueto
growunlikepreviousWebservicesofasimilarnature.Inordertofindapossibleanswer,we
needtoviewFacebooksmodusoperandiintheoverallhistoryoftheInternet.
Aseachofthethreephaseshasshown,Facebookbasedonitsemptystructurewasableto
absorbandcombineexistingsoftwareorusagetypesoftheWeb.Thiscouldindicatethatthe
moreadaptableandflexibleastructureis,thegreaterthepossibilityofsurvival.
6.1.FromtheInternettotheWeb
Theinterestingthingisthatthisparticularmechanismoccurredatacrucialtimeintheshort
historyoftheInternet:atthepointintimewhenthespecificsoftwaresystemtodayseenasthe
InternettheWorldWideWeb(WWW)wasinvented[28].InAugust1991,aBritishsoftware
developeremployedatCERNinSwitzerland,TimBernersLee,publishedtheresultsofseveral
yearsofprogramminginthenewsgroupalt.hypertextwiththetitleWorldWideWebExecutive
Summary,afterwhichthesourcecodewasaccessibletoanyoneinterestedinusingitor
developingit.TheWWWwasdifferentbecauseitcombinedtwophenomenathathadbeen
separateinthepast:hypertextprogramsthatmadeitpossibletojumpfromonepartofatextto
anywhereinthesametext,whichhadbeenusedincomputerssincethe1980sandtheoptionof
downloadingfilesfromothercomputersviaacomputernetwork.BernersLeescombinationof
thesetwophenomenameantthattheWWWcouldbeusedtojumpfromonelocationinatexton
onecomputertoanylocationinatextonanycomputerconnectedtothecomputernetwork.The
fundamentalfunctionalitywhichmadejumpingfromonecomputertexttoanotherpossiblewas
calledthehyperlink.Thenotionofahyperlinkseemsobvioustoday.Atthebeginningofthe
1990sitwasrevolutionary,especiallywhencomparedtotheInternetbeforetheWWW.
TheInternetbeforetheWebconsistedroughlyofawidevarietyofdifferentsoftwaresystems,
eachmadewithaspecificpurpose:BitnetRelayorInternetRelayChatwereusedforchatting
emailprogramsforelectronicmailnewsgroupsandemaillistsforsharingknowledgeand
discussinganythingatallspecialprogramswereusedforaccesstoinformationdatabasesthe
FileTransferProtocol(FTP)wasusedtotransferfilesandGopher,acompletelynew
phenomenonatthebeginningofthe1990s,usedahierarchicalmenustructuretodownloadfiles
fromothercomputersaswellasaccessingandsearchinginotherservices.Gopherwasthe
biggestcompetitortotheWWW.Theseprogramsoftenworkedinvarioustypesofpartially
closednetworksandwerenotable(orintended)tocommunicatewitheachother.Forexample,
whenusingthepoormansInternettheverywidespreadBulletinBoardSystems(BBS)of
thelate1980syouhadtocalleachBBSviaamodemwhereyoucouldhaveanemailaccount
orparticipateindiscussions.IfyouwantedtovisitanotherBBS,youneededtocloseone
connectionandcallagain,whichtodaywouldbetheequivalentofopeninganewInternet
connectioneachtimeyouwantedtogotoanothersite.Fromtheuserspointofview,therewere
amyriadofdifferentsoftwaretypesandwaystoaccessthenetworkwiththeirownspecificuser
andcommunicativesituations.
TheWWWwasaddedtothecomputernetworkenvironmentin1991,anditquicklybecame
widespreadfrom130sitesinJune1993to23,500twoyearslater[29].Atthesametime,it
slowlybegantoabsorbthefunctionsthateachoftheothersoftwaresystemspossessed:free
Webmailbecamewidespreadfromthemid1990s,discussionforumsbecamepartofthe
weblogs,theoldnewsgroupswereavailableontheWWW(groups.google.com),andWeb
browsersstartedtosupportfunctionssuchaschatandaccesstoFTPservers.Therewereof
coursemanyotherimportantfactorsinvolvedinthepopularityoftheWWW,suchastheopening
oftheInternettocommercialactivity(1992),whichmatchedtheformoftheWWW,the
emergenceofthegraphicalbrowserMosaic(1993),Websearchengines(from1995),andthe
factthattheWebwouldeventuallyhandlebothsoundandimages.
6.2.TheWebandFacebooksimilarpatterns?
Allinall,thestrengthoftheWWWisthatitofferedaveryflexibleframeworkwhichmadeit
possibletocombinethecommunicativeandsocialfunctionswhichwerepreviouslyassignedto
eachspecifictypeofsoftwareornetworkinthesamebox,enablingthemtoseamlessly
communicatewitheachotherviahyperlinks.Thispossibilitywasabigadvantagefromtheusers
pointofview,sothetrendincreasedexponentially:themoreactivitytheWWWpermitted,and
themorefunctionsworkingtogether,moreusersjoined,increasingactivity.
AsimilarpatternseemedtobeanimportantdrivingforceinthedevelopmentofFacebookasa
mediatext.JustastheWWWattractedandabsorbedpreviouslyseparatesoftwaretypesinother
formats,FacebookabsorbedorintegratedsoftwaretypesthatwerealreadyavailableontheWeb
asseparateservices.TheeffectoftheWebonprevioustypesofsoftwareoutsidetheWebwas
matchedbytheeffectofFacebookoncontemporarysoftwaretypesontheWeb.Inthissense,
FacebookisalmostasdiverseastheWebintermsofsoftwaretypes,usabilityandusersso
itfunctionslikeaminiversionoftheWebwhereyoucanstayinthesameprogram,likeaWeb2
insteadofaWeb2.0.
WhencomparingFacebooktotheInternetshistory,onefactbecomesclear:thebettera
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softwaresystemisatstrikingabalancebetweenbeingopenandflexibleontheonehandand
prescriptiveandstructuralontheother,thegreaterthechanceisofoutperformingorabsorbing,
gatheringandintegratingothersoftwaresystemsandthusgrowingandbecomingthedefacto
standard.Itshouldbenoted,however,thattherearedifferencesbetweenthedevelopmentof
theWWWandFacebook.Firstofall,FacebookwascreatedintheWeb,meaningthatitcouldbe
integratedseamlesslywithsitesoutsideFacebook,whereastheWWWhadtoabsorbsoftware
typesfromwhichitdiffered.Secondly,theWebservicesabsorbedorintegratedinFacebookdo
notnecessarilydisappear,aswasthecasewiththeWWWandtheprevioussoftwaresystems.In
fact,inmanycasesFacebookactuallyattractsusers.Andlastly,abigdifferencewasthat
BernersLeeandCERNchosenottocommercialisetheWebbutinsteadreleasedthesourcecode
totheInternetcommunity.
6.3.Socialmediaandthenecessityofhistory
Facebookisoftenreferredtoasasocialmediumorsocialnetworkingsite[30],oftenwiththe
implicationthatitwasanewphenomenon.Buttheneedforsocialityandnetworkingdidnotarise
withtheInternet,theWeborFacebook.Ifanything,thatneedisanintegralpartofhumanlife.
Butthroughhistorythisneedhasbeenreflectedinavarietyofmediatechnologies,fromspoken
andwrittenlanguage,toprint,film,radioandtelevisiontotheInternetandotherdigitalmedia,
eachcreatingtheirowncommunicativespacewithdifferentlimitationsandopportunities.
Soanunderstandingofhistoryteachesusthattheneedforsocialityandnetworkinginitselfis
notanewphenomenon.However,thewayinwhichthisneedishandledissubjecttoanumber
oftransformationsorchangeslinkedtothetechnologiesusedtofulfilitwithsomefeatures
beingpassedonfromonemediatypetothenextandothersdisappearing.Thefirstprofileswere
personaladsinnewspapersinthenineteenthcenturypenpalsandradioamateurscreated
networksoffriendsoverlongdistancesaboutdecadesagoandformanyyearsnewspaper
columnsinfamilyweekliescreatedasenseofcommunitybetweenreaders.Eachoftheseold
formsofcontactcontributedtotheformsofsocialityandnetworkingontheInternet,theWeb
andFacebook.Facebookdidnotstartfromscratchwhatmodernnetworksdoistocombine,
transformanddevelopoldformsofcontactinnewways.TheWebandFacebookdothiswithina
medianetworkthat(unliketheInternetbeforetheWeb)promotestheflexibleandseamless
integrationoftheseneedswithinthesamesoftwaresystembasedononekeyfeature:the
physicalmanifestationofarelationintheformofahyperlink.
Soaswellasprovidingknowledgeofpastevents,historyisalsoanimportantvoiceinany
attempttoexplaintheworldtodayandperhapsthefutureaswell.Theabilitytoidentify
recurrentpatternsanddevelopmentmechanismsinhistorymayprovetobeofgreatimportance
whendecisionshavetobemadetoday:whatweshouldbedoing(ornotdoing)asasocietyor
organisation,orinconnectionwiththetechnologicaldevelopmentandinnovationofcompanies.
Theeventsofthepastrarelyrepeatthemselves,butthemechanismsbehindthemmightdoso.
Sostudyingthepastisanimportantaspectofstudyingthepresent.
Finally,historyisalsoimportantintheshorttermwhenwestudyFacebook.Giventhefactthat
Facebookdevelopedsofastinarelativelyshortperiodoftime,itisnecessarytohaveindepth
knowledgeofFacebooksfeaturesasamediatextatthespecificpointintimethatyouare
considering.Forinstance,inordertoapplyacademicanalysesfrom2006totopicssuchasuser
handlingofaccesstotheirprofilepages,Facebookprofilesasselfrepresentations,ortheuseof
FacebookinconnectionwiththeAmericanmidtermelection[31],thehistoricalcontextofthese
analysesmustbetakenintoaccounttoensurethattheyarenotinterpretedbasedonthe
presentdayversionofFacebook.TheseanalyseswereproducedatapointoftimeinFacebooks
historywhentherewerelimitedoptionsforprofilesandnetworkingandnostatusupdates,News
Feeds,FacebookConnectorappsformobilemedia.Thisalsomeansthatknowledgeof
Facebookshistoryisnecessaryifyouwanttocompareanalysesfromdifferentperiods.Inother
words,itisimportanttobeawareofthechangesthatFacebookhasundergoneinthemediaand
textenvironmentinwhicheachofitsfunctionsandinteractionformsmustbeunderstood.Forthe
samereason,anyanalysisofFacebookshouldbefollowedbyabriefdescriptionofthefeatures
ofFacebookatthetimeinquestion.FacebookisnotjustFacebookFacebookisalways
Facebookataspecificpointintime,suchasin2004,2008and2012.Whichiswhyitisso
importanttoknowaboutthehistoryofFacebook.

Abouttheauthor
NielsBrggerisAssociateProfessor,HeadoftheCentreforInternetStudies,andofNetLab,
AarhusUniversity,Denmark.HisresearchinterestisWebhistoriography,andwithinthisfieldhe
haspublishedmonographs,anumberofeditedbooks,articles,andchaptersineditedvolumes.
RecentbooksareWebhistory(editorPeterLang,2010)andHistoriesofpublicservice
broadcastersontheWeb(coeditorwithMaureenBurnsPeterLang,2012).
Web:http://imv.au.dk/~nb.
Email:nb[at]dac[dot]au[dot]dk

Acknowledgements
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ThispaperwasinitiallypublishedinaDanisheditedvolumeFacebook:Frasocialtnetvrktil
metamedie(Copenhagen:Samfundslitteratur,2013).Iwouldliketothanktheeditorsofthis
volumeJakobLinaaJensenandJesperTkkeforhavinginvitedmetowritethearticle.The
presentversionhasbeenrevisedandchanged.

Notes
1.InJune2007therewere9,000DanishFacebookusers,cf.,Larsen,2007,p.12.
2.Outofapopulationofapp.5.5million,cf.,internetworldstats.com.
3.Themedia/texttheoreticalbasisofthisapproachisBrgger,2009,p.115132.
4.ForanoverviewoftheacademicliteratureaboutFacebookseeWilson,etal.,2012,and
Caers,etal.,2013.
5.Lacy,2008Kirkpatrick,2011.
6.Stutzman,etal.,2012.
7.Lampe,etal.,2008.
8.GulatiandWilliams,2013.
9.FordeliberationsonWebarchiving,seeBrgger,2011.
10.CoedStaff,2009,FAQ.
11.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,Termsofuse.
12.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,About.
13.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,FAQ.
14.Editor,2004.
15.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,FAQ.
16.Saverin,2012.
17.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,Termsofuse.
18.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,FAQ.
19.Saverin,2012.
20.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,Welcome.
21.Saverin,2012.
22.CoedStaff,2009,Facebook,Termsofuse.
23.boydandEllison,2007.
24.Poole,2005,pp.195203.
25.Cf.,alsoBucher,2013,aboutthesoftwaresstructuralconditioningofonlinefriendshipon
Facebook.
26.boydandEllison,2007.
27.Obviously,thedecentralisationintermsofwhatisavailabletotheuserdoesnotnecessarily
correspondtoadecentralisationregardingneithertechnologynorownership,whereFacebook
maybeverycentralised.
28.ForoverviewsofthehistoryoftheInternetandtheWebintheearly1990s,seeAbbate,
1999Anderson,2005AsprayandCeruzzi,2008Banks,2008Barnet,2013BernersLee,
1999Brgger,2010GilliesandCailliau,2000Naughton,2002Poole,2005Wolinsky,1999.
29.Gray,1996.
30.E.g.,boydandEllison,2007.
31.AcquistiandGross,2006Gosling,etal.,2007WilliamsandGulati,2007.

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Appendix
Userdevelopmentandtimeline
DevelopmentinthenumberofFacebookusers

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Figure1:DevelopmentinthenumberofFacebookusers(inmillions).Thedottedlinesmarkthephase
transitionsmentionedinthisarticle.
Source:Figuresfromblog.facebook.com,newsroom.fb.com/Newsandwww.facebook.com/facebook
(January2013).

Timeline
TimelineofmaineventsandphenomenaontheWebandmobileplatforms(left)andon
Facebook(right).Thedottedlinesmarkthephasetransitionsmentionedinthisarticle.

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Figure2:TimelineofmaineventsandphenomenaontheWebandmobileplatforms(left)and
onFacebook(right).Thedottedlinesmarkthephasetransitionsmentionedinthisarticle.

Note:PDFversionofimageavailablehere.

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Editorialhistory
Received20June2014accepted29April2015.

ThispaperislicensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttributionNonCommercialShareAlike4.0
InternationalLicense.
AbriefhistoryofFacebookasamediatext:Thedevelopmentofanemptystructure
byNielsBrgger.
FirstMonday,Volume20,Number54May2015
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doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.5210/fm.v20i5.5423

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