MySpace Battles Facebook Buzz to Stay on Top

They're also a lot more cautious with their content

(NEWSER) - Women are the less fair sex when it comes to social networking. Ladies are a little more likely to delete friends on sites like Facebook and Twitter than gentlemen are, and a lot more likely to keep their pages private, reports AFP . A Pew Research Center study found that 67% of women say they've deleted friends compared to 58% of men, and women are 19% more likely to set their profile to private. More»

People weren't ready for it then, but they are now: Tom Anderson

(NEWSER) - News that Facebook is teaming up with Skype must have sounded like deja vu to MySpace founder Tom Anderson. In a Google+ post , he notes that MySpace partnered with Skype in 2007 and had video chats three years before that, reports PC Magazine . But Anderson isn't joining the critics knocking Facebook for coming late to the video party: "The point is that people weren't really ready for it back then—now is the time, and FB has the userbase," he writes. "The large userbase (750 million) paired with a simple integration of the arguably the best voice/video tech (Skype) is what makes this news." More»

But lots of tech writers pointing out that Google got there first

(NEWSER) - Some quick reactions to Facebook's announcement about incorporating video calling from Skype into the site:

• Andrew Tarantola, Gizmodo : "By integrating video calling directly into the Facebook experience they're able to drop this technology directly into the mainstream. You thought getting Friend Requests from your parents was a hassle? Then you're going to love explaining to your mom why you don't love her enough to accept her video chat requests."
• Verne G. Kopytoff, New York Times : "To a certain extent, Facebook is playing catch-up," writes Kopytoff, noting the recent launch of the Google+ feature Hangouts. "The new Facebook service does not allow for group video chats, for example. It also is not available on mobile phones, unlike Skype’s ordinary service."

Mark Zuckerberg confirms rumors, says site now has 750M users

(NEWSER) - Tech bloggers had this one right: Facebook is indeed adding video calling to the site in a deal with Skype. Mark Zuckerberg confirmed today at a news conference, and the Facebook blog has details, reports the Digits blog at the Wall Street Journal. The feature, which comes a week after Google unveiled a similar feature called Hangouts, should be available to everyone within weeks. Zuckerberg also announced that Facebook is tweaking the chat design to add a buddy list and a group-chat feature. And forget that half-billion figure: Facebook now has 750 million users worldwide, he says. More»

Lack of privacy can be a good thing for investigators

(NEWSER) - Oversharing on Facebook makes it easier for your boss to fire you , your insurer to hike up your rates , and, apparently, your local police officer to arrest you. It seems not-too-bright criminals have a habit of bragging about their misdeeds on social networking sites—sometimes even including photos—which has made investigations much easier for some cops. "It's almost become unfair," a law enforcement source tells the New York Post . "Facebook and MySpace are killing these guys." More»