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Pinterest, an online pinboard, is the latest buzzword in the virtual world

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First, we pinged, then we liked, and then we tweeted. Now, we pin. Pinterest, a pinboard-styled social photo-sharing website, is the new obsession in the social networking town, with many predicting it to be the next big thing.

What's all the buzz about
Pinterest lets users share their favourite images or videos and create a virtual pinboard, showcasing their likes and dislikes. We can pin images and videos from anywhere and follow pinners who share similar interests.
Pinterest users use themed 'image boards' and populate these boards with images or videos, known as 'pins', by clicking on 'Pin It' button. Pins on a given topic can be grouped into boards.

Rising numbers
Launched in 2010 by Yale University graduates Ben Silbermann and Paul Sciarra, Pinterest has been visited by a whopping 13.76 million users worldwide till January 2012, according to ComScore, a web measurement site. Pinterest has got Indians hooked too. "With other social networking sites, you end up reading a lot of things you don't really care about. But, in Pinterest you can follow things and pinboards that you are actually interested in. It's so cool," says Purnima Parashar, 25, an avid Pinterest user.

The legal leg
In recent months, the online world has been afflicted by several legal concerns. In an attempt to address copyright issues, Pinterest allows users to upload pictures from anywhere, but has introduced a system that allows a website owner to stop images from his site from being shared. But, there is also a rider in the site's privacy clause that reads: "We may, in our sole discretion, permit members to post, upload, publish, submit or transmit member content..." Supreme Court lawyer and cyber law expert Pavan Duggal says, "There are no free lunches in the world. When you get to go and share on an online platform, any expectation of privacy should be left out. Under section 79 of IT Act 2000, social media firms are not made liable for any third party data information or communication link made available by them. Unless cyber laws are tightened, not much can be done."

'83% of Pinterest users are female'
Pinterest has become a favourite with the ladies, according to some online tracking sites. While Visual.ly, an
infographics site, calculated 83% of Pinterest's users are female, AppData, an online traffic tracking service, said 97% of the people who liked Pinterest's Facebook page were women. A quick tour through the site makes it amply clear why Pinterest is attracting more women users.
Many popular pinboards on the site share fashion tips, food recipes, DIY 3-D card projects, weddings, furniture and art and craft. Such interests are often seen more in women than men generally.

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