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Eva Maria Mayer

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What do you think about "Google +"? Does it have the potential to be more successful than facebook?

Google recently developed a new social network called "Google +" , which is currently in the beta phase - only a selected crowd of people are able to test it. It has similar functions as facebook and is Google's newest attempt to compete against the current leader in social networks.

What is your opinion about the platform? How do you evaluate the potential of "Google +" ?

Topics: Google social network
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    Sean Miller

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    Aug 8 2011: Sure it has the potential. But that is simply because it is still in the Beta stage right now. Facebook was the first true social media site, since myspace catered to greatly to things other than simply social networking, such as advertising musical artists. If Google + is to overcome facebook it must have some pretty clear advantages over facebook though. Namely, user friendliness and new or "better" options. The hangout option is a great addition, elevating social networking to a much more authentic level of social interaction. The concept of being able to share information with only "circles" also seems much easier and more novel than the facebook security options. I'm not sure their layout and color scheme should be kept as it is in the beta though. Blue and white is much more friendly on the eyes than just primarily a white screen.

    Aside from these things, what worries me is the fact that by checking a box google has the option to access all of your web browsing information. That's plenty of data which they could use to target individuals by catering advertisements to their browsing preferences. Facebook does that already, but it only uses pages liked and accessed through facebook. Opening up your whole web browser to google feels like a monumental invasion of privacy. Of course, you can select no. But how many people are going to diligently read and carefully consider the consequences of simply checking a box?
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