1. Facebook
- Launch Date: February 4, 2004
- Founder: Mark Zuckerberg, along with Andrew McCollum, Eduardo Saverin, Chris Hughes, and Dustin Moskovitz.
- Market Capitalization: Over $900 billion (as of November 2023).
- Active Users: More than 2.8 billion monthly active users.
- Traffic: Facebook ranks as the most visited social media site globally, with billions of daily interactions.
2. YouTube
- Launch Date: February 14, 2005
- Founder: Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim.
- Market Capitalization: Estimated at over $600 billion (as of November 2023), owned by Alphabet Inc. (Google’s parent company).
- Active Users: Surpassing 2 billion logged-in monthly users.
- Traffic: YouTube is the second-largest search engine globally, generating trillions of video views annually.
3. WhatsApp
- Launch Date: January 2009
- Founders: Brian Acton and Jan Koum.
- Acquisition: Acquired by Facebook Inc. in 2014 for $19 billion.
- Active Users: Exceeds 2 billion monthly active users.
- Traffic: WhatsApp handles billions of messages and calls daily, making it a leading global messaging platform.
4. Instagram
- Launch Date: October 6, 2010
- Founders: Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger.
- Acquisition: Acquired by Facebook Inc. in 2012 for $1 billion.
- Active Users: Over 1.3 billion monthly active users.
- Traffic: Instagram is a visual powerhouse, hosting billions of photos and videos, attracting users worldwide.
5. WeChat
- Launch Date: January 2011
- Founder: Zhang Xiaolong and Allen Zhang.
- Owner: Tencent Holdings Limited.
- Active Users: Surpasses 1.2 billion monthly active users.
- Traffic: WeChat is a comprehensive app, integrating messaging, social media, and payment services, dominating in China and beyond.
6. TikTok
- Launch Date: September 2016 (as Douyin in China), September 2017 (internationally as TikTok).
- Owner: ByteDance.
- Estimated Valuation: Over $400 billion (as of November 2023).
- Active Users: Surpasses 1 billion monthly active users.
- Traffic: TikTok has revolutionized short-form video content, amassing billions of daily video views globally.
7. Twitter
- Launch Date: March 21, 2006
- Founders: Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams.
- Market Capitalization: Approximately $40 billion (as of November 2023).
- Active Users: Boasts over 330 million monthly active users.
- Traffic: Twitter is a real-time information hub, generating millions of tweets daily.
8. LinkedIn
- Launch Date: May 5, 2003
- Founder: Reid Hoffman.
- Acquisition: Acquired by Microsoft in 2016 for $26.2 billion.
- Active Users: Exceeds 774 million users.
- Traffic: LinkedIn dominates the professional networking space, connecting millions of professionals and facilitating job searches.
9. Snapchat
- Launch Date: September 2011
- Founders: Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown.
- Market Capitalization: Approximately $85 billion (as of November 2023).
- Daily Active Users: Over 280 million.
- Traffic: Snapchat thrives on ephemeral content, with millions of snaps shared daily.
10. Pinterest
– Launch Date: December 2009
– Founders: Ben Silbermann, Paul Sciarra, and Evan Sharp.
– Market Capitalization: Estimated at over $30 billion (as of November 2023).
– Monthly Active Users: Surpasses 400 million.
– Traffic: Pinterest is a visual discovery platform, hosting billions of pins and inspiring creative pursuits globally.
Understanding the rich history, ownership, and global impact of these platforms provides insights into the ever-evolving landscape of social media. Each network not only shapes online interactions but also influences societal trends and behaviors on a global scale.
