Mother Lode Facebook Use

Sonora, CA -- A three day informal myMotherLode poll last week asked, "Are you experiencing Facebook fatigue?" Fifty-one percent said that they do not use Facebook and another 20 percent said, yes, they were fatigued. Twenty-seven percent of the over 550 responses said they are not tired of the social network.

Facebook has been in the news for copyright issues, most notably Yahoo Inc. is suing over patents. Yahoo claims Facebook has infringed on 10 of its patents covering advertising, privacy controls and social networking. Facebook said it found the action "puzzling" and vowed to defend itself. The Associated Press reported that Facebook purchased over 750 patents from IBM.

Also in the news are users' privacy concerns, the company spoke out against job applications that request Facebook passwords. The Associated Press reports that in Illinois, legislation to allow job-seekers to file lawsuits if asked for access to sites like Facebook is on hold. Employer's currently have the ability to "maintain lawful workplace policies" regarding electronic equipment and investigating suspected unlawful or improper activity.  The bill is expected to be modified and brought back for a House vote.

Facebook announced in February its plans to go public sometime in May. Facebook claims $3.7 billion in revenue and a $1 billion profit last year. That figure is up from $1.97 billion in 2010. The social game maker Zynga was responsible for about 12 percent of Facebook's revenue in 2011. The company claims 845 million members with 141 million or 20 percent in the U.S. Nearly half of Facebook users access it through a mobile device.

Poll results are archived here http://www.mymotherlode.com/news/poll-results/index.php

Written by Sabrina Ambler