Image sources: http://www.userlogos.org/files/logos/axin89/renren.png http://www.simplyzesty.com/wp-content/uploads//2012/08/Facebook-logo.jpeg
Hansen mentioned the Chinese social-networking website Renren.com in his blog post, and that just reminds me to draw some similarities and differences between Facebook and its Chinese counterpart (thanks to Hansen for your reminder :D). After all, I am probably the only one in this class who frequently uses two social-networking websites located in two different regions of the world (i.e. non-China and China). And I feel obliged to share with you my observations as a loyal user at both sites.
Renren, which means “everyone” in Chinese, was founded in 2005 (a little younger than Facebook). Formerly named Xiaonei (which means “at school”), its original focus was to connect students from the same or different schools and to help adults find their long-lost schoolmates. And now it has evolved into the largest SNS (social-network service) website in China with 150 million users (more than 1/4 of the total number of network users in China) and counting. Its user group has also expanded from only students to virtually every social class.
The purpose for me to bring out this discussion is to give suggestions on how the two firms could learn from each other. So after listing some of the basic facts, I will move on to my observations.
Both firms face the challenge of making revenue from the huge user data they gather without annoying the users. Facebook focuses on advertising and applications development. Renren has also paid attention to these areas, but it has ventured beyond them. In March 2010, Renren introduced its own job-hunt platform which helps firms hire current college graduates. In return, firms pay Renren a certain amount of intermediary fee when they successfully hire someone. Renren’s large number of student users gives it a unique advantage when it comes to headhunting. Moreover, students could use this platform to find current employees in their interested firms and ask for advice on job applications. This way, the platform not only benefits firms but users as well. Although LinkedIn is already the market leader in providing similar service in the states, I believe Facebook could definitely grab this opportunity and work on this aspect. Its enormous user count of 600 million around the globe is a valuable resource to any firm in the world. But one thing just came to mind – the existence of that platform might deter some users from putting certain contents on their homepages as they could negatively affect their images in front of the employers. Maybe a modified user homepage specially targeted for employers?
Privacy is a headache, both for Facebook and Renren. The problems each faces are, however, slightly different. Renren had a PR crisis some time ago when it was rumored that its major shareholder is SoftBank, a Japanese multi-national conglomerate. Given the strong tension between China and Japan (which is inflamed by the recent incident of the purchase of some disputed islands by the Japanese government, by the way), many Chinese are disgruntled by the implication that their personal information could be accessible by a Japanese corporation. Renren has to make a public statement that its shareholder is no longer SoftBank in order to appease the public fury. However, that does not mean the user data on Renren is safe and secure – the Chinese government could be as dangerous as, if not more than, a foreign company. Renren, being a Chinese website, cannot escape the surveillance and implicit control of the government. All posts and comments contrary to national/economic interests are removed and relevant users could be investigated. So both firms leak private user data – Facebook leaks primarily to advertisers and application developers while Renren leaks primarily to the government (though involuntarily). And both of them deserve criticism for such leakage. They are at two ends of a spectrum – Facebook being too loose in terms of information control while Renren being monitored too tightly. It might be better if they both move to the middle of the spectrum: certain government control to prevent malicious third-parties and at the same time leaving some leeway to ensure normal users’ freedom of speech.
There are really a lot to say about these two firms – perhaps the two most influential SNS sites on earth (sorry, Google+). They are similar in so many aspects, yet remain so drastically different. As we are considering the “social impact of social networks”, I will definitely share more about what I have experienced in Renren with you. So stay tuned for more updates from China!