MySpace:     -5%
Facebook:   -14%
LiveSpaces:   -6%

This was during a time period that was forecast to show another month of 10% increases. The San Francisco Chronicle is saying that it's burnout and overload:

Social sites become too much of a good thing
Many young folks burning out on online sharing
Aarica Caro is sick of sharing. That is, sharing online.

But even as the phenomenon continues to swell, the effort to maintain an active social life on the Web is taking its toll. Some have grown tired of what once was novel. Some feel bombarded by unsolicited messages, friend requests and advertisements. And some are cutting back.

This suggests that as much as people want to connect through the Internet, the practice also can have the opposite effect: social networking fatigue.

"You join a lot, but you don't keep up," said Dave Taylor, a 44-year-old Internet marketing consultant who complained about having social networking fatigue on his blog after joining about 15 sites. (SFChronicle)

Here's what we know.

Networking works when everyone receives more value than they expend. That value is is subjective and individual. You have to subtract wasted time, annoyance and hassle from the value received. That's a big hurdle.

The initial rush comes from a constant expanding stream of feedback and recognition. Sadly, no one has been able to provide the equivalent of perpetual motion or sustained novelty in online networking. Ultimately, the process requires work and is subject to a serious value analysis.

The very essence of survival in our information economy is being able to tell the difference between activities that produce value from those that destroy it. Although the line is different for each individual and each set of circumstances, the core reality is very constant. Activities must give us a constant positive return that exceeds our investment.

Online social networks do not deliver uniform value to all participants. They simply are not sustainable food chains. Most people lose in the deal.

They are starting to figure this out.

John Sumser © TwoColorHat. All Rights Reserved.
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