FACEBOOK: A TIMELINE OF THE SOCIAL NETWORK
SEPTEMBER 2003
Mark Zuckerberg – then a 19-year old psychology and computer science student at Harvard – launches Facemash, a site where fellow students can rate their classmates
JANUARY 2004
Zuckerberg starts writing code for Facebook and registers the domain name thefacebook.com. Six days after the site is launched, Harvard seniors Cameron Winklevoss, Tyler Winklevoss (pictured), and Divya Narendra accuse Zuckerberg of stealing their idea for a similar website
APRIL 2004
Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz, and Eduardo Saverin form an official partnership – Thefacebook.com LLC
JUNE 2004
Napster co-founder Sean Parker becomes president of Facebook as it is incorporated into a new company. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel (left) invests $500m in return for seven per cent of the company.
OCTOBER 2004
Facebook expands into 21 UK universities, plus Mexico and Puerto Rico.
AUGUST 2005
Facebook buys Facebook.com domain name for $200,000
$3.63m loss
JANUARY 2006
A leaked cash-flow statement shows Facebook made a net loss in 2005
SEPTEMBER 2006
Facebook is opened to everyone over the age of 13 that has an email address
JUNE 2008
Facebook settles two lawsuits related to the Winklevoss twins, resulting in it acquiring their social networking site ConnectU for 1,253,326 shares of Facebook stock and $20m in cash
OCTOBER 2008
International headquarters set up in Dublin. Facebook now has 145m active users
SEPTEMBER 2009
Facebook says it has become cash-flow positive. Hits 360m users
OCTOBER 2010
The Social Network, a film about the creation of Facebook, is released to massive critical acclaim, despite Zuckerberg claiming it is largely inaccurate
JANUARY 2011
Facebook attracts $500m in investment for one per cent of the firm, valuing it at $50bn. Approaches 845m users
SEPTEMBER 2011
eMarketer estimates Facebook’s 2011 revenue at $4.27bn
FEBRUARY 2012
Facebook files to raise $5bn in an initial public offering, valuing the firm at up to $100bn