Social Networking Stats: Global Social Media Ad Revenue To Grow 60% Year-Over-Year, #RLTM Scoreboard

The #RLTM Scoreboard:  Social Networking Stats for the Week

Facebook: 950 million active users via Forbes
Twitter: over 500 million users via Twopcharts
Qzone: 576 million active users via TechCrunch
Sina Weibo: over 300 million users via Bloomberg Businessweek
Renren: over 170 million users via iResearch iUser Tracker
LinkedIn: 160 million members via LinkedIn
Google Plus: 170 million “people who have upgraded” via Google
Tumblr: 66 million blogs via Tumblr
Instagram: 50 million users via CNET
Tagged: 20 million unique monthly users via Tagged
Foursquare: over 20 million users via Foursquare
Pinterest: over 11 million registered users via Search Engine Land
Posterous: 3.9 million members via SF Gate

Please email marissa@modernmediapartners.com if you have additional updates, or a social network that you feel should be on the list.

Global Social Media Ad Revenues Grow 60% Year-Over-Year

Global social media revenues will increase from $11.8 billion in 2011 to $16.9 billion in 2012 – that’s a 43% increase – according to a new report from Gartner.  By 2016, social media revenues will increase to $34 billion, with advertising the biggest contributor by far.

Social media ad revenue will increase from $5.5 billion in 2011 to $8.8 billion in 2012, a year-over-year growth rate of 60%.  According to the Gartner forecast, advertising’s share of global social media revenues will increase from 46.6% to 52%.

Social gaming is the other major source of revenue for social media, totaling $6.2 billion in 2012, or 36.7% of total social media revenues.  Social gaming revenue more than doubled between 2010 and 2011, with the sale of virtual goods largely responsible for the revenue in this area.

Gartner is not the first to adjust social media revenue forecasts upward, according to MediaPost.  How have the numbers changed?  Gartner predicted last year that total social media revenues in 2011 would equal $10.3 billion, but the latest analysis has revised that number to $11.8 billion.  For 2012, Gartner’s prediction has grown from $14.9 billion to the current estimate of $16.9 billion.