Google CEO Larry Page announced yesterday that the search giant's social platform, Google+, has reached the 90 million user mark.
Speaking at the company's fourth quarter results presentation, Page said: “I am super excited about the growth of Android, Gmail, and Google+, which now has 90 million users globally - well over double what I announced just three months ago.
“By building a meaningful relationship with our users through Google+ we will create amazing experiences across our services. I'm very excited about what we can do in 2012 - there are tremendous opportunities to help users and grow our business.”
To put Google+'s user numbers into perspective, Facebook claims over 800 million active users while Twitter is said to have over 100 million active users.
Twitter is not very forthcoming with its user statistics, but according to its CEO Dick Costolo, in September last year just 40% of users were actually tweeting.
On the other hand, Facebook says 50% of its active users access the social network daily. The social giant is also widely expected to reach the billion user mark by the end of this year.
User engagement
In October last year, Page said Google+ had 40 million users, and as such, the fledgling network had to have added more than 515 000 users every day over the past three months.
According to Page, Google has released, on average, a new feature every day since its launch in June, including pages for businesses, new hangout features and circles in Gmail.
“Engagement on + is also growing tremendously. I have some amazing data to share there for the first time: +users are very engaged with our products - over 60% of them engage daily, and over 80% weekly,” says Page.
Analysts have, however, questioned the active user statistics, as Page failed to clarify what Google defines as an “active user” and whether the numbers include those users who use other Google services such as Gmail.
Page, however, emphasises that Google+ is about building “a meaningful relationship with users”.
“Understanding who people are, what they care about, and the other people that matter to them is crucial if we are to give users what they need, when they need it.”
Social showdown?
Page added that he is very excited about last week's announcement about “Search Plus Your World” and the personal relevance that it will bring to search.
Google's foregrounding of its social content in its search results has led to a major outcry from competitors like Twitter, as well as privacy advocates, who have appealed to the Federal Trade Commission to investigate.
While some have said Twitter's reaction to the announcement shows the micro-blogging service is feeling threatened, World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck says the two services could complement each other rather than compete.
“Twitter's appeal and media footprint remains very powerful, so it will probably maintain its growth trajectory regardless of what Google+ does in the short term,” says Goldstuck.
Facebook factor
“Ultimately, Google+ will overtake Twitter, simply based on Google's massive user base. The real target for Google+ is Facebook, and it is the battle of the billions. Facebook will have a billion registered users this year, and Google has more than a billion unique users of its search engine.
“Facebook's challenge is to turn a billion users into comparable revenue; Google's challenge is to turn a billion search users into a billion social networking users. In meeting those challenges, the two companies will set the agenda for where traffic goes on the Internet in the next couple of years.”
Looking ahead, Goldstuck says that by the end of 2012, social networking will be the entry point to the Internet for the majority of its users.
“Many people will think the Internet looks like Facebook, and will be confused when they venture outside its confines. Many will see it through a Google lens, and many through a Twitter filter.
“The 'no filter' users will become a declining proportion of the overall user base, and stupidity will proliferate. The result is that social networks will become messy, noisy and irritating. Mob networking is on its way,” concludes Goldstuck.
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