Google plans new social network to rival Facebook
28th July 2010 by Joseph Jeffries
Search engine giant Google is planning to develop a social network to rival Facebook, according to reports.
Reuters report that Google Inc has held talks with several gaming companies about developing a new service to compete with the hugely popular content generation site Facebook.
Playdom Inc, Electronic Arts Inc’s Playfish and Zynga Game Network Inc have all been approached about the possibility of developing online games for the new service.
It is unclear at this stage, however, when exactly Google plans to launch the new service.
Google already owns Orkut, a social network that is extremely popular in Brazil and India. But with Facebook’s user base also growing rapidly in those countries, it is thought that Google is looking at new ways to keep a competitive edge.
Earlier this week, Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt refused to comment on specific details of the project. He did hint, however, that the new service would not be merely a Facebook clone. “The world doesn’t need a copy of the same thing,” the Wall Street Journal quoted him as saying.
The Guardian commented earlier today that Google’s plan to base its new service around online gaming was a deliberate move, aimed specifically at challenging Facebook’s popularity.
Good online games can generate a considerable amount of traffic and can significantly increase the amount of time a user spends on a website. Facebook’s Farmville is a prime example of a game that attracts and engages users, and Google will no doubt be hoping that its new service can enjoy similar success.
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