MySpace is no more the world’s most popular social networking site as it has been overtaken by Facebook, another close competitor with 132 million unique visitors in June, according to new figures from web tracking firm ComScore.

 

The study showed that on an annual basis, Facebook visits increased by153 percent as compared to just three percent growth to MySpace. Other social networking websites like HI5, Friendster, Orkut, and Bebo showed growth of 100 percent, 50 percent, 41 percent and 32 percent respectively.

 

The strongest growth was recorded in Latin America; while growth in Middle East and Africa were next to follow. In the Asia Pacific region visitors increased by 458 per cent. Facebook has done exceptional marketing to promote its site’s relevance to local markets through local language interface translation; the site is now competing strongly or even capturing the lead in several markets where it had a relatively minor presence just a year ago.

 

Comscore executive Jack Flanagan said that the dizzying increases were helped by Facebook’s tiny global presence prior to its recent initiative to translate the site into other languages.  He also added that the international expansion was now the main target for the major social networking sites.

 

The social networking growth first started in North America and ceased to attain a maturity level. In an interview, Flanagan said, "While the social networking trend first took off in North America, it is beginning to reach a point of maturity in the region. However, the phenomenon is still growing rapidly in other regions around the world - especially as the established American brands turn their focus to developing markets."