the future of FACEBOOK: The Social Network’s Relationship with Millennials Gloria Pu | FILM260

Photo: West McGowan (Flickr)

Facebook was once considered a fad. An online playground for teens and young adults; both a successor and competitor to MySpace.

Photo: Listener42 (Flickr)

But not anymore.

Photo: Aaron Parecki (Flickr)

Since 2005, Facebook has grown to serve

1 billion+ registered users.

Photo: hwanation (Flickr) Source: Facebook Reports First Quarter 2013 Results

Today, it is the quintessential social network.

Photo: kris krüg (Flickr)

Photo: Mrs. Gemstone (Flickr)

It has changed our real-world

vernacular. "Liking," "walls," and "creeping" now carry different meanings.

Photo: star5112 (Flickr)

It has changed how large companies and individual consumers interact.

Photo: THX0477 (Flickr)

It has changed the social norms surrounding our most intimate friendships & relationships

Photo: Marco Paköeningrat (Flickr)

It would appear as though Facebook is a powerful,

omnipresent force that is here to stay.

But is this really the case? Has Facebook peaked?

Photo: Aaron Parecki (Flickr)

42 per cent of young adults between 18 and 29 reported spending less

time on Facebook in a

typical day last year than in 2011.

Source: Pew Research Centre Photo: Tony Hue (Flickr)

Source: Charles Zamaria, Ryerson University Photo: Jixar (Flickr)

Youth, in particular, are trying out simpler “instant gratification” options.

Source: Facebook fatigue and the aging social network. The Toronto Star. Photo: Alex Indigo (Flickr)

Still, with 18 million Canadian monthly users,

there's no denying that a lot happens

on Facebook.

Source: Charles Zamaria, Ryerson University Photo: Matteo Paciotti (Flickr)

And if Canadians are increasingly using social media for its usefulness rather than entertainment,

they kind of have to be on Facebook - right?

Then again… "Something that’s not a choice isn’t necessarily as cool as it used to be.”

Source: Peter Corbett, CEO of iStrategy Labs Photo: Aaron Parecki (Flickr)

Photo: N i c o l a (Flickr)

That is what some of Facebook's teens and young adults are struggling with…

Photo: Global X (Flickr)

…Are the continuous redesigns, privacy changes, and ads

worth the connection we feel

through photos, comments,

and newsfeeds?

Source: http://socialmediatoday.com/rtmixmktg/1392791/are-teenagers-abandoning-facebook-infographic Photo: Victor1558 (Flickr)

Evidently, for some youth, it's not a

worthwhile trade-off. And that's why the average age of a

Facebook user has increased from 38 to

41 since 2010.

Photo: Jametiks (Flickr)

In other words, Facebook is so mainstream that it has become obligatory and

inescapable... not exactly an attractive proposition for millennials.

But does that mean that they're going to leave Facebook by the masses?

No... at least not yet.

Photo: Aaron Parecki (Flickr)

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2011/11/22/technology-facebook-six-degrees-separation.html Photo: Marc Belzunces (Flickr)

There is simply too much information stored on and shared through Facebook.

It shrunk the 6 degrees of separation to 4.74.

Photo: martinak15 (Flickr)

And if there's one thing we know about millennials, it's that they can't

stand to miss out.

Millennials might leave for a while, but the pull of The Social Network is simply too strong for them to stay away.

Photo: Aaron Parecki (Flickr)

Photo: photosteve101 (Flickr)

From one millennial to another: It’s up to us to decide how and how much

we use Facebook.