Friendster

Friendster

Company type	Private
Industry	Social networking, Social gaming
Founded	2002 (2002)
Founder	Jonathan Abrams
Defunct	2018 (2018)
Headquarters	Mountain View, California , United States
Area served	Asia (Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore)
Key people	Jonathan Abrams (founder), Tim Koogle (former CEO), Scott Sassa (former CEO), Taek Kwon (former CEO), Kent Lindstrom (former CEO), Richard Kimber (CEO from 2008)
Products	Social networking service, Social gaming platform, Friendster Wallet, Friendster iCafe, Friendster Hotspots
Owner	MOL Global (from 2009)
Parent	MOL Global (from 2009)
Website	friendster.com

Friendster was a social networking service established by Jonathan Abrams and launched in March 2003, initially operating out of Mountain View, California. The site allowed users to connect with others, share various media, and explore events, musical groups, and interests. It is acknowledged as one of the earliest social networking platforms.

In June 2011, Friendster transformed into a social gaming platform, expanding its registered user count to more than 115 million. The company concentrated its activities mainly in Asia—particularly in the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore—where over 90% of its web traffic originated. By 2008, Friendster led Asian social networks in monthly unique visitors and sustained considerable popularity in Indonesia through 2012.

Revenue streams for Friendster included banner advertisements, contextual ads, and sponsorship deals. Despite initial achievements and regional leadership, the service halted operations in 2015 due to market difficulties and decreasing user interaction, finally ceasing all functions in 2018.

History

Canadian software developer Jonathan Abrams founded Friendster in 2002, preceding platforms like MySpace (2003), Hi5 (2004), and Facebook (2004). The website went live in 2003 and rapidly attracted 3 million users within a few months. It was among the first networks to reach over one million members by utilizing the "Circle of Friends" concept. Friendster operated privately from Mountain View, California, dominating the social networking arena until April 2004 when MySpace surpassed it in page views.

The platform’s early prominence drew coverage from publications such as Time and Vanity Fair, inspiring spin-off sites like Dogster and Elfster. Although competing with comprehensive services like Windows Live Spaces, Yahoo! 360, and Facebook, Friendster declined a $30 million acquisition proposal from Google in 2003. Instead, it raised capital from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Benchmark Capital at a valuation of $53 million—a decision frequently regarded as a significant error in Silicon Valley history.

Subsequent leadership shifts included Abrams’ replacement as CEO in April 2004 by Tim Koogle (formerly Yahoo! CEO), followed by Scott Sassa in June 2004, Taek Kwon in 2005, and later Kent Lindstrom. By this stage, the company’s valuation had plummeted to less than 5% of its 2003 peak.

By 2008, Friendster had amassed over 115 million registered users with notable expansion across Asia. However, U.S. traffic declined sharply beginning in 2009 amid Facebook’s ascendancy. In August 2008, Richard Kimber, a former Google executive, assumed the CEO role with a strategy centered on growing the Asian market presence.

In December 2009, Malaysian internet firm MOL Global purchased Friendster for $26.4 million. Facebook acquired Friendster’s core patents for $40 million in 2010. By June 2011, Friendster repositioned itself as a social gaming platform, discontinuing traditional social network accounts but retaining user information and contact lists. The company sought to complement rather than rival Facebook.

Friendster ceased all site operations indefinitely on June 14, 2015, with complete closure finalized by June 2018. In October 2023, the domain was obtained by Friendster Labs Inc., which relaunched the website featuring an early access registration prompt.

Financial background

Established in 2002 with an initial capital infusion of $12 million from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Benchmark Capital, and private financiers, Friendster rapidly garnered considerable interest. In 2003, it turned down a $30 million acquisition proposal from Google.

The company raised further investment through multiple rounds: $3 million in February 2006 from Kleiner Perkins and Benchmark Capital; $10 million in August 2006 led by DAG Ventures; and $20 million in August 2008 spearheaded by IDG Ventures. Prior to its acquisition by MOL Global, principal investors included Kleiner Perkins, Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, IDG Ventures, along with individual stakeholders.

Awards and accolades

• July 2006: Granted a significant patent related to Social Networking technology.
• 2007: Recognized as one of the Top 100 Private Companies by AlwaysOn Media.
• April 2008: Honored as a winner in the Webware 100 awards.
• 2009: Featured in a satirical segment by The Onion News Network that highlighted its decline since 2005.

Offerings

In November 2009, Friendster formed a global partnership with MOL AccessPortal Berhad (MOL), a prominent payments provider with over 600,000 physical and digital channels. This collaboration enabled the launch of the Friendster Wallet, facilitating micro-transactions for its 115 million registered members. The Wallet accommodated various payment options such as prepaid cards, mobile payments, online transactions, and credit cards.

Additionally, Friendster worked alongside game developers and publishers to monetize content leveraging MOL’s extensive payment infrastructure and user base. Its sub-brands comprised "Friendster iCafe," a system designed for cybercafe management, and "Friendster Hotspots," which provided complimentary Wi-Fi services for retail locations.

Supported languages

Friendster offered support for numerous languages including English, Filipino, Thai, Malay, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Chinese (both Traditional and Simplified), Japanese, Korean, and Spanish. It was the first worldwide social network to integrate Asian language support under a single domain (www.friendster.com), promoting effortless interaction across varied regions.

Platform development

Starting in August 2006, Friendster introduced widgets and embedded content on user profiles via its developer program. By 2007, approximately 40% of users had incorporated widgets into their profiles. The platform supplied developers with APIs to create customizable applications both within and outside Friendster’s environment, operating as an open platform without proprietary restrictions and featuring an open revenue-sharing model.

Friendster pioneered support for both OpenSocial and the Facebook Platform. In December 2009, it unveiled a revamped website featuring a redesigned user interface. In Fall 2024, Friendster initiated a phased relaunch employing an invite-only system reminiscent of Gmail’s original launch approach.

Intellectual property

Friendster owned critical patents related to online social networking technologies encompassing user connection systems, mechanisms encouraging content uploads, connection management processes, compatibility scoring algorithms, and methods for sharing relationship data. In August 2010, Facebook acquired all of Friendster’s patents for roughly $40 million, effectively positioning Friendster as an arms-length subsidiary within Facebook’s corporate structure.

Site transformation

In June 2011, Friendster shifted its focus from being a social networking service to becoming a social entertainment platform centered around gaming. Although user profiles were retained, most previously available content—including photos, messages, comments, testimonials, blogs, forums, and groups—was largely removed. To assist users in preserving their information, an export feature was introduced, with a deadline for photo exports extended until June 27, 2011; any photos not exported by this date were permanently erased.

Within just two months following the relaunch, Friendster gained over 500,000 new users and featured more than 40 games. Both daily and monthly active user numbers increased by 50%, with the vast majority of new registrations—over 90%—originating from Asia. Ultimately, Friendster discontinued its website and services at the close of 2015 and officially ended all operations on July 1, 2018.