# In Brazil, Google paves Facebook's path to the top (HT Tech) > Facebook's popularity in Brazil has exploded over the past year, and the company may have its biggest competitor to thank for it. # In Brazil, Google paves Facebook's path to the top ## Facebook's popularity in Brazil has exploded over the past year, and the company may have its biggest competitor to thank for it. Feb 16 2012, 19:02 IST ![Follow on Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/follow-us-facebook.png) ![Follow on Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/follow-us-facebook-hover.png) ![Share](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/Share.png) ![Share](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/Shareclicked.png) ![Share on WhatsApp](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/whatsapp.png) ![Share on WhatsApp](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/whatsapp-hover.png) ![Share on Twitter](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/twitter.png) ![Share on Twitter](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/twitter-hover.png) ![Share on Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/facebook.png) ![Share on Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/facebook-hover.png) ![Bookmark](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/Bookmark.png) ![Bookmarked](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/Bookmarked.png) Facebook's popularity in Brazil has exploded over the past year, and the company may have its biggest competitor to thank for it. In its recent initial public offering filing, Facebook said its number of active users in Brazil had nearly tripled in 2011, finally placing it ahead of Google Inc's Orkut service as the No. 1 social network in the country. 'I can't think of an example where Facebook has grown so quickly,' said Andrew Lipsman, vice president of industry analysis at research firm comScore. 'It really just skyrocketed.' Also read click here. In Brazil, the birthplace of co-founder Eduardo Saverin, Facebook found a market primed for growth, with rapidly expanding Internet access, increasing rates of computer ownership, and rabid demand for social media. Much of the credit for that may belong to Google, analysts say. While a growing economy and easier credit gave Brazilians the ability to purchase computers and broadband connections, Google's Orkut gave them a reason to do so in the first place. 'Until Orkut came along in 2004, Internet use in Brazil was stagnant,' said analyst José Calazans of market research firm IBOPEnielsen in São Paulo. 'When people here started buying computers and going to Internet cafes, it was specifically to access Orkut. Now many of those people are moving to Facebook.' Orkut offered Brazilians their first taste of social media, with a simple interface and Portuguese language option making it easier to use than competing sites such as Friendster and MySpace. In a highly social culture such as Brazil's, where even business meetings end in hugs, the site became a national phenomenon. 'Everyone was getting on Orkut,' recalls Raquel Recuero, a professor who specializes in social media at the Catholic University of Pelotas in Brazil. 'You would add people you didn't even know, and people would compete to see who had the most friends.' Orkut's rise coincided with an economic boom that lifted millions out of poverty, with many Brazilians gaining access to computers and the Internet for the first time. That turned into a double-edged sword, both expanding Orkut's user base while alienating more-affluent early adopters. 'After the lower classes started to come on, there was a culture clash that happened within Orkut, which was amplified by the media,' said Recuero. 'For instance, we would see reports on the news of criminals stalking their victims on Orkut. People started to rethink how they used the site and started becoming aware of concepts like online privacy.' Orkut's failure to innovate in line with users' expectations created an opportunity for Facebook to step in, offering new applications and games, as well as the ability to connect with people beyond Brazil. Over time, Brazilians came to see Facebook as a way for them to start their online lives over from scratch, helping lead to its widespread adoption. Is Brazil big enough for both? Orkut still holds a very large share of the social networking space in Brazil, with more than 34 million users compared with Facebook's 36 million, according to comScore. Yet, its days may be numbered. 'If you think back to the U.S., Facebook and MySpace were very competitive for a while going back to about 2009,' said comScore's Lipsman. 'You can co-exist for a while, but what tends to happen is that people tend to consolidate around one or the other.' Facebook will try to maintain its momentum in Brazil, which it called a 'key source of growth' in its IPO filing. According to IBOPEnielsen, more than 85 percent of active Internet users in Brazil use social networking sites, compared with 74 percent in the United States and 77 percent in Japan. Brazilians also spend much more time on those sites, averaging almost eight and a half hours a month, compared with six and a half hours in the United States, and slightly more than four hours in Japan. That kind of engagement is particularly valuable for Facebook, where each page view or interaction adds to the company's bottom line. While Facebook's growth in Brazil will continue to hinge on attracting more Orkut users, it could be limited by infrastructure in the country, where less than 30 percent of households have Internet access. Brazil's government will play a key role in addressing that. President Dilma Rousseff has made it a goal of her administration to offer Internet access to more than 70 percent of Brazilian households, through investments in fiber optic networks, community Internet centers, and 4G telephony in World Cup host cities. 'Not even half the population is on the Internet yet, so Facebook has a lot of room to grow,' said IBOPEnielsen's Calazans. 'But that will also depend on the Internet growing just as fast.' Catch all the Latest Tech News, Mobile News, Laptop News, Gaming news, Wearables News , How To News, also keep up with us on Whatsapp channel,Twitter, Facebook, Google News, and Instagram. For our latest videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel. 16 Feb, 18:17 IST 71,589,382,573,622 NEXT ARTICLE BEGINS ![View all](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/view-all-icon.png) ## Tips & Tricks ![Ghibli-style art](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### How to turn your photos into Ghibli-style art with ChatGPT for free: Step-by-step guide ![How to create an invitation using iPhone’s new Apple Invites app- Step-by-step guide](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### How to create an invitation using iPhone’s new Apple Invites app- Step-by-step guide ![Apple TV app arrives on Android phones and tablets: What you get and how to install it](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Apple TV app arrives on Android phones and tablets: What you get and how to install it ![Vodafone Idea OTT plans](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Vodafone Idea users can now stream 17 OTT apps with one subscription: Here's how ![Android data transfer methods](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### How to transfer data from one Android to another using Google backup, USB-C cable, and more ## Editor’s Pick ![iPhone 16e launched with A18 chip, Apple AI—bringing flagship power on a budget: Check specs, price](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### iPhone 16e launched in India: All details about the new budget mobile from Apple ![DeepSeek was founded in China with only a fraction of the budget of the top AI companies in the US.](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### DeepSeek AI: How it works, who’s behind it, how it’s different from ChatGPT, and its big US market impact explained ![iPhone 17 Air likely to get this feature that iPhone 17 Pro models may miss out on](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### iPhone 17 Air likely to get this feature that iPhone 17 Pro models may miss out on ![Google Whisk AI explained: How remixing works, availability, and how it differs from Gemini](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Google Whisk AI explained: How remixing works, availability, and how it differs from Gemini ![iOS 18.4 beta arriving soon: Know why it is the biggest iPhone update](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### iOS 18.4 beta arriving soon: Know why it is the biggest iPhone update ## Trending Stories ![Airtel 5G SIM card will now be delivered in 10 minutes with Blinkit- How to order](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Airtel 5G SIM card will now be delivered in 10 minutes with Blinkit- How to order ![Infinix Note 50s 5G+](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Infinix Note 50s 5G+ set to launch in India with 64MP camera and MediaTek Dimensity 7300 SoC ![Xiaomi X Pro QLED Series sale starts in India: Check price, availability, and more](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Xiaomi X Pro QLED Series sale starts in India: Check price, availability, and more ![Apple Intelligence AI training](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Apple plans to train AI using your on-device data without accessing personal content or emails: Report ![CMF Buds 2](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### CMF Buds 2 key features and price revealed ahead of April 28 launch: Details inside keep up with tech ![Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/tech-facebook.png) ![Twitter](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/tech-twitter.png) ![WhatsApp](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/tech-whatsApp.png) ![Facebook](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/tech-facebook.png) ## Gaming ![Check out these five gaming monitors under ₹20,000,](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Top 5 gaming monitors under ₹20000 you should consider ![gaming consoles](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Grab gaming consoles at discounted rates during Amazon Great Indian Festival: Up to 72% off ![Pokémon GO Wild Area 2025](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Pokémon GO Wild Area 2025 to bring Grimmsnarl family, Shiny Hatenna, and global challenges ![Shade Silver](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Shade Silver free on Steam for a limited time: Here’s how to get it ![Call of duty](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/ht-tech-bg-img-90-66.png) ### Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 skips Switch 2 at launch, release date and price leak ![View all](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/view-all-icon.png) ## Trending News ### Airtel 5G SIM card will now be delivered in 10 minutes with Blinkit- How to order ![Airtel 5G SIM card will now be delivered in 10 minutes with Blinkit- How to order](https://images.livemint.com/static/static/1x1_img.gif) ### Infinix Note 50s 5G+ set to launch in India with 64MP camera and MediaTek Dimensity 7300 SoC ![Infinix Note 50s 5G+](https://images.livemint.com/static/static/1x1_img.gif) ### Xiaomi X Pro QLED Series sale starts in India: Check price, availability, and more ![Xiaomi X Pro QLED Series sale starts in India: Check price, availability, and more](https://images.livemint.com/static/static/1x1_img.gif) ### Apple plans to train AI using your on-device data without accessing personal content or emails: Report ![Apple Intelligence AI training](https://images.livemint.com/static/static/1x1_img.gif) ### CMF Buds 2 key features and price revealed ahead of April 28 launch: Details inside ![CMF Buds 2](https://images.livemint.com/static/static/1x1_img.gif) ## Trending Gadgets Mobiles Laptops Tablets ![HT Tech](https://images.hindustantimes.com/tech/static/revamp/images/png/HT_tech-new.gif) - https://tech.hindustantimes.com/tech/news/in-brazil-google-paves-facebook-s-path-to-the-top-story-EFbmluo2ol140cY617MNCN.html