The Evolution of Social Media - Part ||

From Public, Centralized to Private, Decentralized Social Networks

Social media is embedded in almost every aspect of our lives and businesses. Understanding the forces that have driven its evolution guides our predictions on its future – including the ways it will impact our business goals.

Why do we use our real names online, exposing ourselves to privacy breaches? Who started that, and is it going to change?

In this report, we survey how the connection between digital finance and the development of online social networks set the pendulum swinging between public and open sharing versus data privacy and anonymity. We discuss changing attitudes towards “real identity” online, and how it will impact the networking structures of social media futures.

Here’s what’s inside:

• PayPal’s impact on social networking
• Facebook’s Real Identity Policy
• Data leaks that set the tide turning against centralized networks
• Cryptocurrency’s role in the social media of Web 3.0

About this series:

Since its inception in 1997, social media has evolved in leaps and bounds. This four-part technical report series examines the technological, financial and cultural factors associated with this evolution to forecast future chapters in the ongoing journey of social media.