The History of Social Media and its Impact on Business

IntroductionThis paper examines the history of social media. The plan was to approach this work from it historical development to its modern day perspective. The authors also looked at the definition of social media, its concept and application in the 21st century. In the decade of information systems, social media has played a vital role in transforming business and communications. We believe that the fastest way to grow a business entity is through social media and networking. In 2000, many social networking sites emerged to ease interaction with people that share common interest in music, education, movies and so on. This also affected how businesses conducted their transactions and advertisements, and also their products.It is difficult to study social media without encountering the phrase social networking. Therefore, both concepts are discussed in this article. The Merriam- Webster dictionary defines social media as "forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and blogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos). " The same source defines networking as "the exchange of information or services among individuals, groups, or institutions; specifically: the cultivation of productive relationships for employment or business. "There are many ideas about the first occurrence of social media. "Throughout much of human history, we've developed technologies that make it easier for us to communicate with each other" (Carton, 2009). The earliest information encountered by the writers of this article referred to 1792 and the use of the telegraph to transmit and receive messages over long distances (Ritholz, 2010). Emile Durkheim, a French sociologist known by many as the father of sociology, and Ferdinand Tonnies, a German sociologist, are considered pioneers of social networks during the late 1 800s. Tonnies believed that social groups could exist because members shared values and beliefs or because shared conflict. His theory dealt with the social contract conceptions of society. Durkheim combined empirical research with sociological theory. Also, in the late 1800s, the radio and telephone were used for social interaction, albeit one-way with the radio (Rimskii, 20 11, Wren, 2004). Social networks have evolved over the years to the modern-day variety which uses digital media. However, the social media isn't that new. In addition, it didn't start with the computer but instead the telephone. During the 1950s, phone phreaking, the term used for the rogue searching of the telephone network, began. This process was accomplished through the use of homemade electronic devices that facilitated unauthorized access to the telephone system to make free calls. Phreaks were able to find telephone company test lines and conference circuits to complete their task. Brett Borders stated phreaks were able to hack into corporate unused voice mailboxes to host the first blogs and podcasts (Borders, 2010). During the 1960s, the public saw the advent of email (Borders, 2010). However, the internet was not available to the public until 1991. Email was originally a method to exchange messages from one computer to another, but both computers were required to be online. Today, email servers will accept and store messages which allow recipients to access the email at their convenience. In 1969, ARPANET, created by Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), a U.S. government agency, was developed. ARPANET was an "early network of time-sharing computers that formed the basis of the internet. " CompuServe, the third development of the 1960s, was also created in 1969 with a mission to provide time-sharing services by renting time on its computers. With very high fees, this service was too expensive for many (Rimskii, 201 1; Ritholz, 2010). Computer TechnologiesSocial media was further developed during the 1970s. …