50% of Tweets Consumed Come From .05% of Users

ajensen201102 writes "A mere 20,000 Twitter users steal almost half of the spotlight on Twitter, which now ropes in a billion tweets every week. That means only 0.05% of the social network's user base attracts attention, according to a new Yahoo Research study. From the article: 'Like findings in previous studies, the researchers for this one conclude Twitter resembles an information-sharing hub rather than a social network, with the top generators garnering huge follower tallies but not following their content consumers in return.'"

Power law?

[LordNacho]

This isn't really so surprising. Just like Twitters, most of the world's men have only shagged a few women, while a few guys have done it with hundreds. A huge number of people live on a dollar a day, but some guys at the top can make over a billion a year. Most entertainers are unknown wedding singers, but a few are known by everyone on the planet.

Not saying it's right or wrong, just these kinds of distribution occur.

Re:In other words...

[MrHanky]

Actually, that should read as 0.05% of Twitter users are big celebrities.

Re:In other words...

[Anonymous Coward]

"In other words "99.95% of twitterers are twits."

Hardly. At least half of them are twats,

Re:Which is what it's good for.

[N1AK]

I've tried to see the point in Twitter, but apart from making it easier to have group conversations by SMS I really can't work out what it is supposed to achieve. Most 'good' sources on Twitter are effectively informative, and could provide the content more effectively using RSS, email etc.

The beauty of twitter

[DNS-and-BIND]

The real secret of success of twitter is that it makes the other 99.5% of narcissists believe that what they write is Really Important. Remember the Twitter Revolution in the Islamic Republic of Iran? Twitter users really thought that their tweets were important, and all they had to do was wish hard enough and the theocracy would fall. Strangely enough, it didn't happen. I know, I don't get it, either. How many bloggers changed their page backgrounds to green? Still, the religious nuts didn't get the signal. If they would have all had twitter accounts, they would have seen just how much opposition there was, and surely they would have resigned - to avoid the devastating ridicule of twitter users if nothing else. Another thing: either there needs to be a universal translator or these theocrats need to have mandatory English lessons, otherwise how can they understand the depth of condemnation the world sends their way?

Not even 15 minutes of fame...

[MadeInUSA]

Twitter was originally conceived as a way for everyone to voice their thoughts and provide visibility to others into their lives. After this, my only conclusion is that NO, technology by itself won't make everybody famous and followed. Things happen in the twitterverse just as they happen in the real world, that is, most people disappear in their irrelevance while a few get followed and admired by everybody. Sad but true, you're lucky if you even get your 15 minutes of fame...

Re:Which is what it's good for.

[bemymonkey]

Twitter is such a shit social tool I actually started unfollowing all my friends; it's still great for following news feeds, though.

No, it's fucking not. I only use Twitter because certain Android devs think there's no other way to post news... but there's something about only reading 140 chars (or was it 150?) before having to click through to see WTF the topic of the tweet actually was that seriously pisses me off.

SMS is the root of all evil, and it's ruined a perfectly good service. A centralized alternative to RSS (which is all Twitter really is) would've been great... although tbh: Google Reader's interface kicks Twitter's ass anyway.

Why are we using this crap again?