Google Orkut Experiment

What the hell is Orkut? It was Google’s first attempt at building a social network. It launched in August of 2008 but never posed a serious challenge to Facebook. As of December 2009, the breakdown of Orkut users by country was 51.09% Brazil, followed by India with 20.02% and United States with 17.28%. Apparently, in Brazil many cafes proudly display the fact that they offer Orkut access. Last night, a bunch of Google Buzz users decided to poke around on Orkut. We even formed a “Community” for Google Buzz Users that anyone can join.

These are my impressions: Orkut’s interface blends Facebook and MySpace both circa 2008. Users follow one another (requiring the followee’s consent) and status updates appear in chronological streams. In this regard, it functions pretty much like Facebook and MySpace and differs from Twitter and Buzz. Like MySpace and unlike Facebook, users can customize their experience by selecting themes and completing detailed and risque profile information (turn ons, turn offs, things you can find in your bedroom, etc.). Many of us tame folks just pasted a link to our Google Profiles that we use for Buzz. One feature that caught my eye today is that users leave “tracks” when they view other people’s Orkut pages. Some might find that objectionable but Orkut otherwise provides significant control over your information, moreso than Facebook does.

Where do I think this is heading? Probably nowhere outside of Brazil and India but it is a Facebook alternative that some people might consider. Some of the Orkut plumbing was probably integrated into Google Wave and Google Buzz. Speaking of Buzz, apparently the API is going to be released at Google I/O, per a buzz by Robert Scoble, which could boost activity. In my opinion, Buzz is alive and well despite the hiccups at launch and dearth of media attention since then. Leo Laporte, Louis Gray, Robert Scoble and other tech notables routinely hang out on Buzz. It’s really become an interesting platform because headlines, excerpts and full posts become launchpads for in depth discussions that don’t (couldn’t?) occur on Facebook and Twitter. Also, some users have reported that improvements are being privately beta tested on Buzz, although details are scarce.

If you click over to Buzz, feel free to follow me or if you want to try out Orkut send me a friend request.

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