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Facebook is turning 10! The site went live on February 4, 2004. Originally launched on thefacebook.com, it didn’t take long for Mark Zuckerberg’s service to take the world by storm. In honor of Facebook’s 10th anniversary, here are the top 10 facts you should know about the social-networking juggernaut.
1. Facebook Has Over 1 Billion Active Users
According to Yahoo!, Facebook has 1.23 billion active users around the globe. And according to TechCrunch, those users share an upwards of 2.5 billion pieces of content every single day. Not bad for a site that originally had just a few users at a single university.
You can see how Facebook’s layout has evolved over the years in the video above.
2. Mark Zuckerberg’s Salary Is Just $1 a Year
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has a salary of $1 per year. But don’t feel bad for this Facebook founder … he’s worth about $19 billion, according to Forbes.
The Huffington Post notes that Zuckerberg is in good company. Other notable CEOs who draw just $1 in salary per year include Larry Page of Google and John Mackey of Whole Foods.
3. Facebook Got a Birthday Great Gift: Record Revenue
The LA Times reports that Facebook’s 10th anniversary lines up nicely with its fourth quarter earnings report. The company’s revenue rose nearly 50 percent to $2.4 billion. That’s a pretty nice birthday gift!
What started as a simple website for connecting with classmates is now a diversified tech company, with plans to offer a variety of new apps in the coming years. No wonder Facebook stock reached a record high of $62.50 on Jan 30.
4. Facebook Wants to Bring Internet to the Third World — Adding Billions of Customers
In an interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek titled “Facebook Turns 10: The Mark Zuckerberg Interview,” Zuckerberg talked about his plan for the next 10 years. Part of that plan: bringing cheap wireless and mobile devices to the developing world:
If we can help develop some of these economies, then they will turn into markets that our current business can work in.
Zuckerberg is part of Internet.org, a technology consortium that aims to bring technology into poorer countries, thereby boosting their economies. Wired reports that tech companies such as Nokia, Qualcomm and Samsung are also part of the consortium.
5. Zuckerberg Has a Personal Milestone Coming in May
Mark Zuckerberg in 2005 talking about his relationship status.Conversations led to the "it's complicated" FB option. http://t.co/LJcnuTBGvX
— Laurie Segall (@LaurieSegallCNN) February 3, 2014
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Just a few months after Facebook turns 10, Zuckerberg will turn 30. After his birthday in May, Zuckerberg will have spent about a third of his life running Facebook.
With the lofty goal of adding another 5 billion users to Facebook in the coming years, it looks like Zuckerberg will have plenty of work to keep him busy.
But his plans don’t include starting a family any time soon. In a recent interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Zuckerberg stated that while his wife is ready to have kids, he is not. He added:
I just want to make sure when I have kids, I can spend time with them. That’s the whole point.
On the next page, you’ll learn some surprising facts about Facebook’s unlikely origins, as well as Facebook’s biggest challenges in the years ahead.
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Facebook 10th Anniversary: Top 10 Facts You Need to Know