How can the French be so contradictory? 81% is the number of French people who are not trusting the social media websites, such as Facebook, Viadeo, Myspace.. They believe that their personnal datas are not safe, and feel that anyone could get a look at them and use them. However 60% still think that it is impossible nowadays not to be part of such a website, and share informations on the internet.
If we look at the figures, especially for Facebook, until the user interface was translated from English, less than 500 000 users were registered by the end of 2007. Once the UI has been translated into French, Facebook became the number one social media website within a year, having more then 4 million users. Last month (April 2009), the word “Facebook” has been the query the most typed in the Search Engines in France: it has been searched 38.3 million times. And with 13 677 000 visits, the website was ranked 13th in march 09.
France is a land of contrast, where until not so long ago, French people would not trust to buy something from a TLD not ending by FR. Now this does not apply anymore, and whatever a French would tell you and admit, we are following the trends, even if it comes from the US.
*source Mediametrie, Harris Interactive
Jean Marc Thomas
Latest posts by Jean Marc Thomas (see all)
- The French are addicted to their mobile phones - December 17, 2009
- Mobile internet in France - June 3, 2009
- Social media and France – the contradictions - May 27, 2009
[…] popularity, or lack of, social media networks in France. According to Jean Thomas’ article, Social media and France – the contradictions, from Multilingual Search: World Edition, in May 2009 81% of French people did not trust social […]
Hi, i’m french and i thimk you’re saying a lot of nonsenses.
First of all everyone knows that smoking is bad for the body, that fast food is not good for health, and that sort of thing.
It’s not safe to drive, it’s not safe to take the bus during the night.
It’s not because people says that websites like facebook are not secure, that they’re afraid of it and they’ll not use it.
[…] More: social media and France […]