Facebook, one of the most popular social media platforms in the world today, has become an integral part of everyday life for billions of users since its launch. But when exactly did Facebook first become available to the general public?
The Early Days of Facebook
Facebook was founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and his college roommates Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes while they were students at Harvard University. Zuckerberg launched a website called “Thefacebook” on February 4, 2004 as a way for Harvard students to connect with each other online. Membership was initially limited to Harvard students only.
Later in 2004, Facebook expanded to allow students from Stanford, Columbia, and Yale to join. It gradually opened up to more universities over the next couple of years, first accepting high school networks as well. As Facebook continued to grow, it dropped the “The” from its name and officially became known simply as “Facebook” in 2005.
The Public Launch of Facebook
In September 2005, Facebook took its first major step beyond just university networks by allowing high school students to join Facebook. This was the first time that non-college users were granted access to the platform.
Then in October 2005, Facebook became available to the general public when anyone with a registered email address was allowed to sign up. However, users still needed an email address associated with an educational institution or organization to join. So while technically open to the public, Facebook membership was still limited.
It was not until September 2006 that Facebook finally removed all restrictions and allowed anyone to sign up and create a profile regardless of whether they had an educational or organizational email address. This open registration helped boost Facebook’s membership exponentially.
Key Dates in Facebook’s Open Registration
Here is a timeline of key dates related to the public opening of Facebook membership:
| Date | Facebook Milestone |
|---|---|
| September 2005 | Facebook opens to high school networks |
| October 2005 | Facebook opens to public with .edu email address requirement |
| May 2006 | Facebook opens to corporate networks |
| September 2006 | Facebook opens to everyone with no restrictions |
Growth of Facebook After Opening to the Public
Once Facebook opened up membership to people outside university and high school networks, growth took off exponentially. Some key stats about Facebook’s growth after becoming available to the public:
- By September 2006 when everyone could join, Facebook had around 10 million active users
- Within one year of open access, Facebook reached over 50 million active users by September 2007
- By 2009, Facebook had grown to more than 200 million users
- By 2011, Facebook exceeded 500 million users
- In 2012, Facebook surpassed 1 billion monthly active users
This hyper growth demonstrated the massive demand for social networking and connectedness amongst internet users all over the world. Opening membership access helped catapult Facebook from a niche college network to a mainstream global platform.
Driving Factors Behind Facebook’s Public Growth Spurt
Some of the key factors that drove Facebook’s incredible member growth after becoming open to everyone included:
- Network effects – more users led to more valuable connections, leading to viral growth cycles
- Global internet proliferation – expanding online access opened new markets
- Mobile adoption – Facebook’s mobile app made it accessible on smartphones
- Teen market – teens became enthusiastic early adopters
- Media sharing – photo/video sharing became immensely popular
- Engaging features – news feed, timelines, games, apps, etc.
How Facebook Evolved After Opening Up
Facebook looked very different in 2005 compared to the Facebook we know today. Once Facebook moved beyond just university networks, it evolved with new features and capabilities:
Major Changes and Additions
- News Feed – algorithmic feed of friends’ updates (2006)
- Like button – easy way to interact with content (2009)
- Groups – allows users to connect by shared interests (2010)
- Chat – enables real-time messaging (2011)
- Timeline – user profile tells life story (2011)
- Graph Search – semantic search engine (2013)
- Live video – broadcast and watch video in real-time (2016)
- Stories – ephemeral photo/video sharing (2017)
Business Model Shifts
- Free for users – Facebook generated revenue from ads targeted using profile data
- Acquisitions for talent and technology – WhatsApp, Instagram, Oculus, etc.
- Facebook Platform – opened up to third-party developers to build apps and games
By starting out focused on serving university students, Facebook was able to refine its product and build critical mass before becoming open to everyone. The disciplined growth trajectory allowed infrastructure and business models to mature as well.
Conclusion
Facebook officially opened up to public access in October 2005, allowing anyone to join with a registered email address. However, full open registration came a year later in September 2006 when restrictions were removed entirely. This public opening came after more than a year of steady expansion beyond just college campuses. Facebook’s careful rollout and viral consumer adoption primed it for massive growth after leaving the university niche. Within a year of open access, Facebook reached 50 million users and its global domination as a social network was evident. The public launch marked Facebook’s transition from successful startup to influential global technology giant.