LiveJournal – Russian Expression Tool?

LiveJournal has been around since 1999 as a “standby” of blogging and social networking. Yesterday Six Apart (which owns LJ) agreed to sell the company to SUP a Russian online media company. The complete terms of the deal are not available but SUP will evidently create an American management company to manage the social network's operations. Media company buyouts have been abundant in a sort of “feeding frenzy” for social media traffic and I think we can expect more to come. Microsoft just outbid Google for a 1.6 percent stake in Facebook for $240 million and though this seems crazy to me – the trend is never the less here.

LiveJournal has a substantial U.S. user base of around 18 million unique users per month according to an article in the NYT's today. According to the article former founder Brad Fitzpatrick – now with Google – will serve on the advisory board of LJ for SUP. LiveJournal started as a sort of diary or online log entries and has progressed into a full fledged social network over the years. The users there are relatively young and to a large extent female according to the demographics.

This news is interesting, especially given the recent resounding victory of President Vladimir Putin. According to many sources, including an article today on Forbes , 28 percent of the traffic at LiveJournal is generated by Russian speaking members and visitors. According to this article many Russians are fearful of being tracked and identified for open expression – the Forbes article gives examples that independent views are not accepted in Russia these days. There is great concern that the Kremlin is behind SUP's acquisition in an effort to further quell dissident or independent thought – though no true evidence was presented.

I always find it interesting when business and politics cross paths, particularly with regard to Web 2.0 and the relative freedom it has provided to so many. So many countries seem to fear their people and what they think – I suppose that maybe all of them do. I wonder if it is in the interest of the governed (ever) to be limited in such ways and also exactly who benefits most from such limitations?

So, the news of mergers and buyouts – especially this one – sets me to pondering about power and money. A subject for another post perhaps, and especially with just supposition to go on. In the end I expect LiveJournal will reflect the tone of some truth in the months to come. On the face of it, this news is exciting in its global implication for the “ownership” of Web entities at least.