Is Facebook leaving real-name authenticity?

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Facebook is turning 10 and it seems that it’s time to experiment even more, in an effort to maintain its popularity in the highly competitive world of social media.

Also Read: Top Four Social Media Trends to Remember in 2014

Mark Zuckerberg spoke to Bloomberg Businessweek on the future of Facebook and he mentioned among others that we should expect several standalone apps coming from Facebook Creative Labs, aiming to expand the users’ interest.

We should expect several standalone apps coming from #Facebook Creative Labs.

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Thus, after Paper that is about to be released in the US, Mark Zuckerberg and the Facebook team is considering embracing the idea of anonymity, despite their current focus on real identity.

Facebook was the first social network that stressed the importance of real identity, and it already has come a long way with this point of view, but it seems that times are changing and they must adapt to the new needs. As with Instagram, new Facebook apps might not require a real name log in, which is a new direction for the popular social network

#Facebook is considering embracing the idea of #anonymity.

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According to Zuckerberg,

[quote]I don’t know if the balance has swung too far, but I definitely think we’re at the point where we don’t need to keep on only doing real identity things, if you’re always under the pressure of real identity, I think that is somewhat of a burden.[/quote]

This decision might be related to several surveys pointing that Facebook is losing the ground on the younger audience, with Snapchat and Instagram grabbing the teens’ attention. Since Snapchat relies on ephemerality, and Instagram allows you to log in without necessarily using your real name, Facebook tries to maintain its ‘coolness’ by leaving behind authenticity, at least for its new apps.

Although this doesn’t mean that new Facebook users will be able to join by using any name they want, it is still a sign of a changing perspective and possibly of a new era on the Internet, with anonymity being praised once again.

How do you feel about exposing your real name on Facebook?

How different would you act if you could hide your identity?