Ning Takes on Facebook

Ning, you know the Web 2.0 dudes with some serious branding issues, have finally removed their sheep's clothing. And the fox has got ambition. Ning is Andreessen's latest gig and up until now has been the leading platform provider for other social networks and intranets. They have approaching 1 million networks on their platform, from granny collecting groups to serious artist hangouts. And on the back of these specialist networks they have quietly gathered 20 Million members.

So now they have flicked the switch, turned themselves inside out and changed Ning.com into a Facebook for the 20 Million. Voila! And in one fell swoop the world has yet another social network to contend with. And you thought you could get away with just your Facebook and Linkedin accounts.