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Today one of the world’s most popular social networks hits the double digits: Happy 10th birthday, Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg (and a few friends) launched the site in his Harvard dorm room. Here’s a look back over the last decade of the network.
On February 4,2004 Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes and Eduardo Saverin launch The Facebook from a Harvard dorm room. By the end of that year, the site would have over one million users.
In the spring of 2005, Zuckerberg and company moved operations to Palo Alto, Ca. The company expanded its reach to 800 college networks. That fall they added high school networks.
Facebook for mobile launched in April of 2006. Early versions allowed users to send messages or post on walls of their friends via text message. Later that year, Facebook opened itself up to all users. They also added the News Feed option to help users keep track of their friends’ activity.
Sheryl Sandberg joined Facebook in 2008 as the company’s chief operating officer. In July Facebook officially makes its debut on the Apple iPhone allowing users to manage their profiles and keep up with friends. The is still one of the most popular free apps available in Apple’s App Store.
On February 9, 2009 the “like” button arrived. This allows friends to show their approval of a status, shared story or photo. This button has become one of Facebook’s signature features.
In October of 2010 a movie about Facebook titled “The Social Network” hit the big screen. The story of the company’s birth won several Oscars for depicting the behind-the-scenes efforts in creating the site. Included in the movie were the disputes between co-founder Eduardo Saverin and twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, who allege Zuckerberg stole their idea for Facebook.
Facebook made its first major acquisition in 2012 by snapping up Instagram. The company paid $1 billion for the popular photo sharing app.
In May of 2012 Facebook launched one of the largest initial public offerings ever — valued at $16 billion. The social network set the initial share price at $38. The company’s price has surged to over $60 a share after a slow start Later that year, the site topped more than one billion active users.
The company unveiled the HTC First in April of 2013. It’s a smartphone available on AT&T’s network that runs a Facebook-powered interface. They also introduced Facebook Home – a download for other Android devices. In November of that year Facebook offered $3 billion to Snapchat — a photo and video messaging app popular among teens. Snapchat turned them down.