Digg Founder Claims Google Is Launching a Facebook Killer?

Digg Founder, Kevin Rose posted this on his Twitter account recently:

Ok, umm, huge rumor: Google to launch Facebook competitor very soon “Google Me”, very credible source

While he labels it as a huge rumor, he is not somebody who would throw stuff in the air without any concrete support. So is Google really launching a new social service that could kill Facebook? The answer is both Yes and No. Facebook is as strong in the social media market as Google is in the search engine market. It would be nearly impossible for a new comer to move either of them from their respective positions. However, there is another very interesting option Google has.

As The Next Web reports, Google’s social network Orkut is still used by over 100 Million users worldwide and while Google Buzz failed to meet users’ expectations, it has another tens of millions of users. If Google launches a new service by combining these two, it can have half of Facebook’s traffic i.e. 250 Million users in no time.  Throw in improved privacy features and a half decent interface and many users would leave Facebook for an alternative, specially if it is backed by a brand like Google.

Do you think Google will succeed if it launches a serious  competitor  to Facebook?

[Via SFWeekly]

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Tehseen Baweja

Tehseen likes to write about Internet tools that make life easier. Check out his blog at Ijaar.com for more good stuff or follow him on Twitter @tehseenbaweja

  • http://www.thecommongeek.com TheCommonGeek

    I think that Google will definitely grab a fair share of Facebook users if they get the privacy issues right at launch. Unlike they did when they blundered the privacy at the launch of Buzz. Google has a good chance if they launch soon.

  • http://www.mezzi.com/ Aluminum Laptop Case

    Very interesting news. If anyone can make a play to knock off facebook, Google would have a very good chance. Imagine the exposure they can get just buy featuring it on their homepage. They obviously have the marketing budget to make it popular too.

  • http://emailmarketingcity.com Email Marketing Blog

    Google would most likely create a very decent competitor to Facebook due to the sheer amount of resources and capital they have at their disposal!

  • Cracker Jack

    Amazon tried to move in on Netflix's DVD rental business about 8 or 9 years ago. Everyone thought AMZN was going to run NFLX right out and dumped the stock. That was the last I heard of the attempt. NFLX has long since recovered and Amazon is still not renting DVDs.

    David doesn't just beat Goliath in the Old Testament. That size that scares so many people can just as quickly get in your way. Google can try to take on Facebook, but they're apt to discover they've bitten off more than they can chew.

  • http://www.zayiflama-yontemleri.tk bölgesel zayıf

    I think that Google has the best chances.

  • http://www.florida-web-design-firm.com Nick | Florida Web D

    I think Google does a great job and develops exception products, but Facebook is here to stay. Facebook users are a specific type and for them to pack up and start all over with Google would be a huge burden. Facebook-ers are not like MySpace-ers.

  • http://www.3dtv-information.com 3Dtv information

    I think google wants to have a big pie in the social media market.I am not sure if they can crush facebook but they want their market share.A lot of advertisers are changing from google to facebook because google has become too expensive to make money.Facebook advertising is relatively cheap and has a huge market and google wants their share.Who can blame them……

  • http://www.deerme.net/ Sheryl

    I do not know if Google can create a strong FaceBook competitor, though I would like to think so. Outside of the search engine itself, most of Google's more successful products were ones that Google purchased, not ones Google created itself. Also, for many people, FaceBook IS the Internet, except when they need to run a search, when Google IS the Internet. So, Google's success of building a true FaceBook competitor strikes me as unlikely.

    That said, I can still hope. I very begrudgingly have a FaceBook account; I thoroughly dislike it and strongly resent that so many people rely on it for things that, pre-FaceBook, they did elsewhere. Now, if it isn't on FaceBook, then it ceases to exist.

  • http://www.isisandosiris.com.au/ Isis and Osiris

    Well Facebook is a mammoth social media site… but still people who are enjoying the improved features of Facebook and the people who have hundreds of fans on Facebook…why would they want to switch and take the hectic procedure to a new site whether it is launched by google itself.

    Though there is a sharp possibility that the new breed of the social media users will surely going to like the google’s version of social networking.

    • http://www.mezzi.com/ Aluminum Laptop Case

      Yes that will definitely play a role in it all. People have invested a lot of time and energy into building up their facebook friends lists, shared photos and profile settings. They will not want to waste time repeating the whole process. So for Google's facebook killer to do well, it would need to simplify the process, ideally with some kind of account importing feature.

  • http://cafedegeek.com Awais Chaudry

    Talking about the Muslim Community,many people have already left facebook due to Blasphemey issues. I think if google can overcome many peoples which people have with facebook such as privacy, security and other issues it will surely put an end to facebook.

    cafedegeek.com