Google’s Orkut

Where it’s top: Brazil and India make up more than 80 percent of Orkut’s traffic.

Languages: English, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Marathi, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, and Telugu

Standout features: Google power. Language features make this social networking site the top Web destination in Brazil, and by some estimates half of the country’s Internet users are on the site. Much like the verb “to google” in English, the word Orkut (pronounced “oh-koo-chee” by Portuguese speakers) has become part of the Brazilian lexicon; the site even inspired a popular song, “I’m going to delete you from my Orkut.” True to Google’s global reach, the site also features content in five languages native to South Asia, which may explain its high popularity in India. But not everyone in that country is excited about Orkut. Shiv Sena, a Hindu nationalist party, has called for the site to be banned due to its “immoral” content; some party followers have even gone as far as attacking Internet cafes. So far, however, attempts to convince the government to block the site have failed.

Hot or not? Not. The site may remain king in certain niche markets like Brazil, but according to Web research firm Alexa, Orkut reached its peak number of users back in 2006. Traffic is basically flat at a time when other social networking sites are experiencing amazing growth. Google is already looking at other options and spearheading its own “OpenSocial” project. The new technology is meant to allow Web developers to create content that will work with any number of social networking sites.

Facebook

Where it’s top: Canada, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Norway, Panama, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, and Britain. The site boasts at least 60 million users worldwide, and the company expects to reach more than 200 million by the end of 2008.

Languages: English

Standout features: Global social activism. For any issue that young people in the world care about, you can bet there’s a Facebook group dedicated to it. This fact has led to some problems with oppressive governments in the Middle East, however, where real-world activism is tightly restricted and Facebook has become the online organizing tool of choice. Arab countries’ make up a significant portion of the site’s traffic, and Egypt has the highest number of Facebook users after the United States, Canada, and Britain. Facebook groups such as “No to arresting journalists” and “Free Egypt” provide forums for activists concerned with free speech, democracy, and human rights. In April 2007, Facebook removed an Arab gay rights group after the company received complaints from the Egyptian and Saudi governments. Bloggers in the United Arab Emirates and Iran sometimes complain that Facebook is being blocked entirely, although those countries governments deny any official ban on the site. Due to its primarily social function, Facebook can serve as a forum for human rights groups in many countries’ that would otherwise suppress political speech. Of course, virtual activism is a poor substitute for the real thing, however.

Hot or not? Hot. Microsoft recently paid $240 million for a 1.6 percent stake in the social networking site, but Facebook has to play its cards right to stay on top. The worry? Google may seek to use OpenSocial as a “Trojan horse” to pry open Facebook’s relatively closed system.

Hi5

Where it’s top: Central and South America (except Brazil), and outliers such as Mongolia and Romania

Languages: Spanish, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Romanian, Polish, and Turkish

Standout features: The sad truth is, it’s like a Latin American MySpace. Users tend to do little more than create their own personal Web pages. Hi5 founder Ramu Yalamanchi attributes the U.S.-based site’s success to the company’s decision from its inception to provide services not only to the U.S. English-speaking market, but to the global market as well. The site’s easy-to-use interface and localized search utility that covers over 70,000 world cities also aided its start-up in other countries. In contrast, MySpace did not even provide menus and content in Spanish until 2007, a delay that allowed Hi5 to gain prominence among Latin Americans. Hi5 also dominates in Portugal, Mongolia, and Romania for many of the same reasons.

Hot or not? Lukewarm. Once a site has a loyal group of members, it can be difficult to get them to switch even when better options are available. The company is profitable, even in non-English-speaking markets, and it plans to expand in the U.S. market by connecting Hispanic users with their relatives back home. Hi5 is one of the sites joining with Google in its OpenSocial partnership, which may be just the thing to keep Hi5 from entering Internet obscurity.