Facebook's History | Features | Updates - Full details

Facebook- History, Features and all the Information;

Having started in 2004, Facebook is no longer the mere network site through which businesspeople could communicate in some colleges but a multi-billion-dollar organization that has defined the digital age. Facebook has perhaps changed the way people share, communicate and access information with more than 3 billion users who are scattered across the globe.

The article presents an in-depth overview of the history of Facebook, its main aspects, and key updates which managed to influence its development.

Facebook history:

2004 :The Birth at Harvard

• Founder: Mark Zuckerberg
• Orginal Name: TheFacebook
• At first it was exclusively available to students at Harvard.
• Spread out rapidly to other Ivies and then to the U.S. and Canadian universities.

2006: Public Opened

• Facebook became accessible to anybody who had a valid email address and passed the age of 13.
• It ushered in hyper growth to the number of users worldwide.
• 200700|Three-year platform expansion 2009.

Facebook Platform (2007): 

• The facebook platform allows third parties developers to create apps and games (e.g. FarmVille).
• Business Pages, Pages of celebrities and, pages of people made their way into Facebook.
• Users became centered on News Feed.

2012: IPO and Instagram buy out

• In May 2012, Facebook had initial public offering, raising more than $16 billion.
• Bought Instagram at the price of 1 billion, indicating that the company aimed at becoming the master of the mobile and visual social media.

2014 - 2016 Video & Messaging

• Bought WhatsApp at the price of 19 billion dollars and Oculus VR at the price of 2 billion dollars.
• Spinoff Messenger into a its own standalone messaging app.

2021: Meta as a rebranding 2021

• The Facebook corporation transformed its name to Meta Platforms Inc.
• The development of the metaverse, 3D virtual and augmented reality ecosystem was prioritized.

The Essential Facebook Characteristics:

1. News Feed

• The main page with posts of friends, pages and groups.
• Personalizes using an algorithm.

2. Friends and Following

• Readers are allowed to send friend requests and follow the public profiles.
• Allows building personal lists and manage privacy.

3. Posts and Stories

• Post text messages, share photos, videos or check-ins.
• In 2017, stories (24-hour posts) were introduced in order to compete with Snapchat and Instagram.

4. Messenger

• Separate app to communicate through chat, video and voice.
• Group chats are supported, stickers, emojis, etc.

5. Facebook Live

• In 2016, live video streaming became available.
• Facilitates in-real-time communication using comments and reactions.

6. Marketplace and Facebook Pages

• Pages: Brands, businesses and public figures.
• Marketplace: A peer to peer buying and selling service.

7. Facebook Groups

• Social-oriented ability to have a talk about particular interests.
• Visable appearance on public, private, and hideous team.

8. Facebook Watch

• Video-on-demand service started out in 2017.
• Contains shows, creator content and recommendations.

Major Updates and milestones:

2010–2012:

• Released Like button (and subsequently reactions).
• Introduced new Timeline, abandoning the former form of profile that was made like a wall.
• Bought Instagram and introduced Facebook mobile applications to the center of user experience.

2016 - 2018: of Data & Privacy Challenges

• Scandal with the Cambridge Analytica (2018) disturbed the confidence of the users.
• Facebook has updated privacy settings and has come up with the controls of Off-Facebook Activity.

The 2019 - 2020 period marks the period of Growth & Regulation.

• Highlighted Groups and Event.
• Launched Facebook Dating in a few countries.
• Monopoly and misinformation challenged the company by regulators.

2021 - 2023 The Meta Shift

• Introduced Horizon Workrooms and other AR / VR projects.
• Concentrated on the business of the Metaverse and the construction of cross-platform integration of Instagram and WhatsApp.
• Added professional profiles, Creator tools and new advertising choices.

2024 - 2025: AI and Development

• Robots using AI to offer content proposals and chatbots on the Messenger.
• Improved Facebook Reels with a competitive goal of TikTok.
• Meta launched Avatars AI and Threads in multiple platforms.
• Statistics of (Users) (As of 2525)
• Enhanced User Actives: 3.05 billion+
• largest utilized social media in the world (Statista)
• Large domain The major users are India, U.S., Indonesia, and Brazil.

What the Year 2020 Will be Like for Facebook

Meta’s Vision:

• Transform the concept of social networking to be immersive virtual.
• Constructing AI-based platforms, augmented reality device, and VR spaces.
• Emphasis on monetization of creators, as well as social integration of e-commerce.

Conclusion 

The transformation of the internet and social interaction is very quick, and Facebook includes all of them in its development. Although it was initiated as a college project, it has turned out to be a technological ecosystem that is involved in most elements of present-day digital living including communication and commerce, entertainment, and virtual reality. Facebook hopes to lead the way to defining what the future of connectivity online looks like as it maintains its transition under Meta.

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