# Social Networking Oversaturation Financial Crisis Forces Site Shutdowns By Alex Covert | Published 2008-12-13 | Pop Culture Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/internet-becomes-antisocial-the-death-of-social-networking References: [technologyreview](http://www.technologyreview.com/business/21791/?a=f) The current financial crisis is stirring the social network pot, allowing some to rise to the top (or perhaps more appropriately, not to sink so low.) A long list of yesterday's wonder-sites such as Hi5, [LinkedIn](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/linkedin-games), Jive, Pownce, and Value have either scaled back, been sold or shut down entirely. The winners, who still may or may not weather the storm, are [Facebook](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-facebook-metaverse), MySpace and Twitter. Bottom line: Money makes the world, and the Internet, go round. **Implications** - But the thing about the Internet is that it's viral and cyclical. There are certain sites -- Facebook, for instance -- who seem to have carved out a valuable niche in the psyche of [Generation Yers](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/noteit-bff). It's hard to imagine them not succeeding. The other companies? I'd say they're at the mercy of changing Internet emotions. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 2.0/10 - Popularity: 5% | Activity: 47% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial - Top markets: North America, Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Pop Culture](https://www.trendhunter.com/popculture) > [Internet](https://www.trendhunter.com/internet) ## Key Themes ### Why This Trend Is Growing - **Financial Crisis in Social Networking:** The financial crisis in the social networking industry creates opportunities for disruptive innovation. - **Consolidation of Social Networking Sites:** The shutdowns and acquisitions of various social networking sites highlight the trend of industry consolidation. - **Resilience of Dominant Social Networking Platforms:** Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter demonstrate their ability to weather the storm amidst the social networking oversaturation. ### Industries Being Reshaped - **Social Networking:** The social networking industry is experiencing a period of turbulence and change, creating opportunities for disruptive innovation. - **Technology and Internet:** The financial crisis and shutdowns of social networking sites impact the technology and internet industry. - **Digital Advertising:** The resilience of dominant social networking platforms presents opportunities for disruptive innovation in the digital advertising industry. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Social Media Metaverse Projects](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-facebook-metaverse.md) - [Social Networking Hubs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/internet-social-caf.md) - [Interest-Based Social Networking](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/phnk.md) - [Music-Focused Social Media](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/musicboard.md) - [Cross-Industry Insight Networks](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-think-party.md) - [Focused Social Platforms](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/lastweekend.md) - [Niche Interest Social Networks](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/spiral-social.md) - [Fun-Centered Social Platforms](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/buzzfeed-island.md) - [Group-Centric Social Media Platforms](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/chatter-social.md)