Google+ already has 50 million users

By Dave Neal

SOCIAL NETWORKING TRACKER Paul Allen has revealed that by his estimates Google+ has already hit the 50 million user mark.

Allen, who is the founder of Ancestry.com, revealed the numbers on his Google+ account, of course, and explained that the big burst in users came since Google opened up its social network to the general public.

"Yesterday (give or take a few days) Google+ likely crossed the 50 million user mark. Since being opened to the general public (over age 18) last week, Google+ has been growing by at least 4 per cent per day, meaning that around 2 million new users have been signing up each day," he wrote.

"Given this momentum, it is hard for me to imagine a scenario where Google+ doesn't end up with hundreds of millions of users. It's just a matter of time."

Fifty million people is not all that many though, particularly when you compare it against the real people almanac that is Facebook. Allen said that Google might challenge that social network with Google+, but added that for now the increased competition should be taken as a good thing.

"None of this is necessarily bad news for Facebook," he added. "Competition can make companies much better... I think we are witnessing the most exciting battle in tech history as two well-funded, fast-growing, highly-profitable, genius-led Silicon Valley companies are competing from very different starting points to affect how we find information, how we connect with people, how we view the world, and how we spend our time."

It could be bad news for Facebook however, if more and more people start reacting to the increasing tide of bad press about that company, its changes and their impact on personal privacy. Google might already be capitalising on users' desire to move away from a social network that retains control over your data, or it might be making the most of its already massive user base.