Multiply Introduces New Version of Its "Personal Social Networking'' Site

JavaScriptSearch
Monday, November 13, 2006; 07:59 AM

Multiply Inc. announced version 3.0 that brings to the forefront the interactive, personal networking capabilities which set Multiply apart from other social networking web sites. With the new version, Multiply said it has enhanced the way millions of its users access the site’s unique message board, which involves users in all discussions being shared within their real-world social network, and added new features not seen on comparable sites. Multiply has over 3.2 million registered users and has seen an explosion over the past ten months with more than 500% growth in page views and items posted to the site.

Multiply said it is committed to the concept of “six degrees of separation” and combined its social networking capabilities with a powerful message board-like communications platform that leverages real relationships to help users communicate. For each item a user posts (photo, video, song, link or blog entry), that user specifies who in their network can see it ― for example, "my contacts," "individuals,” "everyone," and most compellingly, “my network.” In addition, its one-of-a-kind messaging platform notifies users whenever someone in their personal network has shared new photos, videos and other posts – or when new replies have been added to existing posts. This facilitates discussions and Multiply believes that it's the discussions about the blogs, photos, videos, music, etc. that fosters dialogue, maintains or builds friendships, and keeps people in touch more effectively.

“Multiply has always been committed to the development of a highly controlled, personal site for people to communicate, share, and keep in touch with their bona fide personal network,” said Peter Pezaris, president and founder of Multiply. “Through collaboration with our loyal user base, Multiply’s version 3.0 is a reflection of how our users want to interact online and share their lives with others.”

New enhancements in Multiply’s version 3.0 include:

• “My Multiply” Page - Multiply's new home page is now the launching pad from which users communicate and interact with their entire personal network. The page identifies whenever someone in a user’s social network has shared new photos, videos and other posts – or when new replies have been added to posts. The “My Multiply” page also provides a snapshot view of a user’s personal tag cloud.
• “My Network” Page - the new My Network page shows a user exactly who is in their social network, including direct contacts and friends-of-friends, and how closely they are connected to everyone in their network. Users identify their contacts with relationship labels like “cousin,” “sister-in-law,” or “roommate” that lets users know how they are connected to people two or three “tiers” away. Multiply also offers a granular level of permission-settings and gives users full control over who sees their digital content, whether the item is a photo album, a video, or a personal blog entry. Multiply’s innovative “proximity index” ranks relevancy between users and a unique personal search engine finds information and content that has been published by one’s family and friends ― not the Web at large.
• “My Site” Page - a user’s My Site page is their personal Multiply website where they can post unlimited digital content to be shared with family, friends and friends of friends. With new drag-and-drop AJAX functionality, customizing the My Site page has been simplified.
• Photos - version 3.0 features a dynamic Ajax-based, photo-editing tool that lets users quickly upload and customize photo albums without loading new pages.
• Videos - users now have the ability to customize the viewing order of the videos they post to their My Site page. Using a simple drag and drop technique, Multiply users can arrange the videos in any order they would like them to be viewed.

Multiply’s 3.0 release comes on the heels of the company extending its offering by introducing mobile social networking. Users can post photos, videos, audio, and links to their Multiply site from any email-enabled device, including mobile phones, blackberries, as well as laptops. Multiply’s mobile feature allows users to expand their social networking activities while they are on-the-go, regardless of carrier or device. In addition, the company recently released a localized version of Multiply for the Japanese market of 90 million+ internet users.

Image Source: Multiply.com.