Hyves
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Type of site
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Social networking website |
|---|---|
| Available in | Dutch, English |
| Owner | Telegraaf Media Groep |
| Created by |
Raymond Spanjar (Founder) Koen Kam (Co-founder) Floris Rost van Tonningen (Co-founder) Nine Ludwig (Editor-in-chief) |
| Slogan(s) | Always in touch with your friends |
| Website | www.hyves.nl |
| Registration | closed |
| Launched | October 10, 2004 |
| Current status | Defunct |
Hyves was a social networking site in the Netherlands with mainly Dutch visitors and members, where it competed with sites such as Facebook and MySpace. Hyves was founded in 2004 by Raymond Spanjar and Floris Rost van Tonningen. The service was available in both Dutch and English.
In May 2010 Hyves had more than 10.3 million accounts. These correspond to two thirds of the size of the Dutch population (which stood at over 16 million in 2010), however this included multiple accounts per person and inactive accounts. The number of accounts had grown by over two million as compared to 1.5 years earlier. Hyves could be used free of charge, but there was an option for a paid Premium Membership (called "Gold Membership"). Gold members had access to some extra features, such as the ability to use a wider variety of smilies in their messages and more uploading space for pictures. The creators have said that the basic of a Hyves account will always be free.
In 2013, the social network was officially discontinued, due to the huge decrease in accounts due to the growing popularity of other social networks like Facebook and Twitter in the Netherlands. The site continued as Hyves Games, where members could use their Hyves accounts to play social games.
Hyves started in September 2004. The name Hyves was chosen because the desired domain name hives.nl was already taken. The name referred to beehives and the fact that social networks are built the same way.
In May 2006 it became public that the Dutch police was using Hyves as a tool to investigate possible suspects. Only information that is uploaded by suspects is being checked.
On December 13, 2007 Hyves was awarded with the title of "most popular site of the year".
In April 2008, Dutch media tycoon Joop van den Ende took a large interest in Hyves. The intention was to expand abroad and provide mobile services.
Hyves changed its design in July of '09. The site got a new look and feel, described as being more docile and synoptic. The profile picture format was also changed into a standard square shape.
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