As I’m sure you’ve all already heard – this week, MySpace will lay off hundreds of its employees and close at least four offices. I can’t say I’m very surprised by the fact that MySpace is on the major decline (I deleted my own personal account over a year ago). However, I wonder now – who’s next? With MySpace soon to be out of the way, which major social network(s) will be the next to go? And what does the future of social media look like?

{ Could it be Twitter? }

I’ve written before about Twitter’s poor first impressions and the idea that only 40% of new visitors return to the site after signing up. Some think it’s a fad, others are obsessed (in fact, 10% of users make up 90% of tweets)…but will the 10% of users that make of 90% of tweets soon get tired of it? Will Twitter sell out like some other networks and become overly-commercialized? Will the spam-bots get so annoying that we all just say “forget it”?

{ Could it be Facebook? }

Facebook has had quite a long run at this point. When I signed up in 2004, only select colleges were included – and now anyone can have a Facebook account (and most people do). However, is Facebook going down the path of MySpace? Are the 100 application invites we receive everyday soon going to turn us away from Facebook? Will a better personal profile network come out? Wasn’t MySpace the top dog until Facebook’s awesomeness overtook it? So which newer, smarter technology will overtake Facebook?

{I Think}

There’s always going to something bigger, better, and more awesome coming around the corner. Social media is a hot topic, and the people/companies that have the ability to make new networks will…it’s just a matter of what and when.

The thing about social media is that it’s full of fads. Something may be hot today and forgotten tomorrow. It’s all going to come down to which new networks come out, and how well we receive them and help them grow.

When something comes out that is better than Facebook, Facebook will fall…Same will eventually be true about Twitter. The only thing these networks can to do ensure that they remain the top dogs for as long as possible is to keep getting better. However, it’s also important not to ruin the network in the process of growing (think Facebook apps). It’s a fine line to walk – and I’m curious to see how it will play out.

{Discuss}

Of course, I don’t know who is the next to go and which new networks are being created as I write this post. But what do you think? Which network is the next to fall from grace? And what does the future of social media look like? Discuss it here!