FutureWire - futurism and emerging technology

Friday, April 07, 2006

Social Networking for Haters

The next generation of social networking websites appears to have begun in the form of Snubster. Instead of focusing on shared preferences, this beta site cultivates relationships through shared dislikes.

President Bush, MySpace, Scientology and Microsoft top the list of most-hated items... so if you hate those, you'll find friends on Snubster. Other hated subjects include Texas Hold 'Em, "emo kids," MTV, the Hummer, and "neighbors who throw xmas trees over their balcony."

Sites like Snubster point out a common weakness about social networks: that members usually fail to leverage their networks once they join. Bryant Choung started Snubster as a joke, but soon realized that a social network based on shared annoyances was perhaps more logical and useful (or at least more entertaining) than other networks:

"The whole concept of online social networking was really starting to irk me," said Choung, who initially envisioned Snubster as a way to stem the often irritating flow of invitations to join networking sites like Friendster and LinkedIn. While such sites seemed like a good idea at first, their usage too often devolves into "an attempt to get as many fake friends as possible."


So sign up... and feel the love.

Source: Wired